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Purchased   by  the 
Mrs.    Robert   Lenox   Kennedy   Church   History   Fund. 


Division. 


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THE    STORY    OF    THE    MORMONS 


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THE    STORY    OF  THE 
MORMONS 


From   the   Date   of  their    Origin   to 
the    Year    igoi 


BY 

WILLIAM    ALEXANDER 


"Nfca  Iforfe 
THE    MACMILLAN    COMPANY 

LONDON:    MACMILLAN    &    CO.,    LTD. 
1902 

All  rights  reserved 


Copyright,  1902, 
By  THE  MACMILLAN   COMPANY. 


Set  up  and  electrotyped  January,  1902.      Reprinted  December, 
1902. 


Norwood  Press 

J.  S.   Cusbing  &  Co.  —  Berwick  &  Smith 

Norwood,  Mass.,   U.S.A. 


PREFACE 

No  chapter  of  American  history  has  remained  so  long  unwrit- 
ten as  that  which  tells  the  story  of  the  Mormons.  There  are 
many  books  on  the  subject,  —  histories  written  under  the  auspices 
of  the  Mormon  church,  which  are  hopelessly  biassed  as  well  as 
incomplete;  more  trustworthy  works  which  cover  only  certain 
periods ;  and  books  in  the  nature  of  "  exposures  "  by  former  mem- 
bers of  the  church,  which  the  Mormons  attack  as  untruthful,  and 
which  rest,  in  the  minds  of  the  general  reader,  under  a  suspicion 
of  personal  bias.  Mormonism,  therefore,  to-day  suggests  to  most 
persons  only  one  doctrine  —  polygamy  —  and  only  one  leader  — 
Brigham  Young,  who  made  his  name  familiar  to  the  present  gen- 
erations. Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  is  known,  where  known  at  all,  only 
in  the  most  general  way  as  the  founder  of  the  sect,  while  the  real 
originator  of  the  whole  scheme  for  a  new  church  and  of  its  doc- 
trines and  government,  Sidney  Rigdon,  is  known  to  few  persons 
even  by  name. 

The  object  of  the  present  work  is  to  present  a  consecutive  his- 
tory of  the  Mormons,  from  the  day  of  their  origin  to  the  present 
writing,  and  as  a  secular,  not  as  a  religious,  narrative.  The  search 
has  been  for  facts,  not  for  moral  deductions,  except  as  these 
present  themselves  in  the  course  of  the  story.  Since  the  usual 
weapon  which  the  heads  of  the  Mormon  church  use  to  meet 
anything  unfavorable  regarding  their  organization  or  leaders  is  a 
general  denial,  this  narrative  has  been  made  to  rest  largely  on 
Mormon  sources  of  information.  It  has  been  possible  to  follow 
this  plan  a  long  way  because  many  of  the  original  Mormons  left 
sketches  that  have  been  preserved.  Thus  we  have  Mother  Smith's 
picture  of  her  family  and  of  the  early  days  of  the  church ;  the 
Prophet's  own  account  of  the  revelation  to  him  of  the  golden 
plates,  of  his  followers'  early  experiences,  and  of  his  own  doings, 
almost  day  by  day,  to  the  date  of  his  death,  written  with  an  ego- 


vi  PREFACE 

tist's  appreciation  of  his  own  part  in  the  play ;  other  autobiog- 
raphies, like  Parley  P.  Pratt's  and  Lorenzo  Snow's ;  and,  finally, 
the  periodicals  which  the  church  issued  in  Ohio,  in  Missouri,  in 
Illinois,  and  in  England,  and  the  official  reports  of  the  discourses 
preached  in  Utah,  —  all  showing  up,  as  in  a  mirror,  the  character 
of  the  persons  who  gave  this  Church  of  Latter-Day  Saints  its 
being  and  its  growth. 

In  regard  to  no  period  of  Mormon  history  is  there  such  a  lack 
of  accurate  information  as  concerning  that  which  covers  their 
moves  to  Ohio,  thence  to  Missouri,  thence  to  Illinois,  and  thence 
to  Utah.  Their  own  excuse  for  all  these  moves  is  covered  by  the 
one  word  "  persecution  "  (meaning  persecution  on  account  of  their 
religious  belief),  and  so  little  has  the  non-Mormon  world  known 
about  the  subject  that  this  explanation  has  scarcely  been  chal- 
lenged. Much  space  is  given  to  these  early  migrations,  as  in  this 
way  alone  can  a  knowledge  be  acquired  of  the  real  character  of 
the  constituency  built  up  by  Smith  in  Ohio,  and  led  by  him  from 
place  to  place  until  his  death,  and  then  to  Utah  by  Brigham 
Young. 

Any  study  of  the  aims  and  objects  of  the  Mormon  leaders 
must  rest  on  the  Mormon  Bible  ("  Book  of  Mormon  ")  and  on  the 
"  Doctrine  and  Covenants,"  the  latter  consisting  principally  of  the 
"revelations"  which  directed  the  organization  of  the  church  and 
its  secular  movements.  In  these  alone  are  spread  out  the  original 
purpose  of  the  migration  to  Missouri  and  the  instructions  of  Smith 
to  his  followers  regarding  their  assumed  rights  to  the  territory 
they  were  to  occupy ;  and  without  a  knowledge  of  these  "  revela- 
tions "  no  fair  judgment  can  be  formed  of  the  justness  of  the 
objections  of  the  people  of  Missouri  and  Illinois  to  their  new 
neighbors.  If  the  fraudulent  character  of  the  alleged  revelation 
to  Smith  of  golden  plates  can  be  established,  the  foundation  of 
the  whole  church  scheme  crumbles.  If  Rigdon's  connection  with 
Smith  in  the  preparation  of  the  Bible  by  the  use  of  the  "  Spauld- 
ing  manuscript"  can  be  proved,  the  fraud  itself  is  established. 
Considerable  of  the  evidence  on  this  point  herein  brought  together 
is  presented  at  least  in  new  shape,  and  an  adequate  sketch  of 
Sidney  Rigdon  is  given  for  the  first  time.  The  probable  service 
of  Joachim's  "  Everlasting  Gospel,"  as  suggesting  the  story  of  the 
revelation  of  the  plates,  has  been  hitherto  overlooked. 


PREFACE  yii 

A  few  words  with  regard  to  some  of  the  sources  of  information  quoted  :  — 

"  Biographical  Sketches  of  Joseph  Smith  and  his  Progenitors  for  Many 
Generations"  ("Mother  Smith's  History,"  as  this  book  has  been  generally 
called)  was  first  published  in  1853  by  the  Mormon  press  in  Liverpool,  with  a 
preface  by  Orson  Pratt  recommending  it ;  and  the  Millennial  Star  (Vol.  XV, 
p.  682)  said  of  it :  "  Being  written  by  Lucy  Smith,  the  mother  of  the  Prophet, 
and  mostly  under  his  inspiration,  will  be  ample  guarantee  for  the  authenticity 
of  the  narrative.  .  .  .  Altogether  the  work  is  one  of  the  most  interesting  that 
has  appeared  in  this  latter  dispensation."  Brigham  Young,  however,  saw  how 
many  of  its  statements  told  against  the  church,  and  in  a  letter  to  the  Millennial 
Star  (Vol.  XVII,  p.  298),  dated  January  31,  1858,  he  declared  that  it  contained 
"  many  mistakes,"  and  said  that  "  should  it  ever  be  deemed  best  to  publish  these 
sketches,  it  will  not  be  done  until  after  they  are  carefully  corrected."  The  preface 
to  the  edition  of  1880,  published  by  the  Reorganized  Church  at  Piano,  Illinois, 
says  that  Young  ordered  the  suppression  of  the  first  edition,  and  that  "  under 
this  order  large  numbers  were  destroyed,  few  being  preserved,  some  of  which  fell 
into  the  hands  of  those  now  with  the  Reorganized  Church.  For  this  destruction 
we  see  no  adequate  reason."  James  J.  Strang,  in  a  note  to  his  pamphlet,  "Pro- 
phetic Controversy,"  says  that  Mrs.  Corey  (to  whom  the  pamphlet  is  addressed) 
"wrote  the  history  of  the  Smiths  called  'Mother  Smith's  History.'"  Mrs.  Smith 
was  herself  quite  incapable  of  putting  her  recollections  into  literary  shape. 

The  autobiography  of  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  under  the  title  "  History  of  Joseph 
Smith,"  began  as  a  supplement  to  Volume  XIV  of  the  Millennial  Star,  and  ran 
through  successive  volumes  to  Volume  XXIV.  The  matter  in  the  supplement 
and  in  the  earlier  numbers  was  revised  and  largely  written  by  Rigdon.  The 
preparation  of  the  work  began  after  he  and  Smith  settled  in  Nauvoo,  Illinois. 
In  his  last  years  Smith  rid  himself  almost  entirely  of  Rigdon's  counsel,  and  the 
part  of  the  autobiography  then  written  takes  the  form  of  a  diary  which  unmasks 
Smith's  character  as  no  one  else  could  do.  Most  of  the  correspondence  and 
official  documents  relating  to  the  troubles  in  Missouri  and  Illinois  are  incorpo- 
rated in  this  work. 

Of  the  greatest  value  to  the  historian  are  the  volumes  of  the  Mormon  publi- 
cations issued  at  Kirtland,  Ohio;  Independence,  Missouri;  Nauvoo,  Illinois;  and 
Liverpool,  England.  The  first  of  these,  Evening  and  Morning  Star  (a  monthly, 
twenty-four  numbers),  started  at  Independence  and  transferred  to  Kirtland,  covers 
the  period  from  June,  1832,  to  September,  1834;  its  successor,  the  Latter  Day 
Saints'1  Messenger  and  Advocate,  was  issued  at  Kirtland  from  1834  to  1837.  This 
was  followed  by  the  Elders'  Journal,  which  was  transferred  from  Kirtland  to  Far 
West,  Missouri,  and  was  discontinued  when  the  Saints  were  compelled  to  leave 
that  state.  Times  and  Seasons  was  published  at  Nauvoo  from  1839  to  ^45- 
Files  of  these  publications  are  very  scarce,  the  volumes  of  the  Times  and  Seasons 
having  been  suppressed,  so  far  as  possible,  by  Brigham  Young's  order.  The 
publication  of  the  Millennial  Star  was  begun  in  Liverpool  in  May,  1840,  and  is 
still  continued.  The  early  volumes  contain  the  official  epistles  of  the  heads  of  the 
church  to  their  followers,  Smith's  autobiography,  correspondence  describing  the 
early  migrations  and  the  experiences  in  Utah,  and  much  other  valuable  material, 


viii  PREFACE 

the  authenticity  of  which  cannot  be  disputed  by  the  Mormons.  In  the  Journal 
of  Discourses  (issued  primarily  for  circulation  in  Europe)  are  found  official  reports 
of  the  principal  discourses  (or  sermons)  delivered  in  Salt  Lake  City  during 
Young's  regime.  Without  this  official  sponsor  for  the  correctness  of  these  reports, 
many  of  them  would  doubtless  be  disputed  by  the  Mormons  of  to-day. 

The  earliest  non-Mormon  source  of  original  information  quoted  is  "Mor- 
monism  Unveiled,"  by  E.  D.  Howe  (Painesville,  Ohio,  1834).  Mr.  Howe,  after  a 
newspaper  experience  in  New  York  State,  founded  the  Cleveland  (Ohio)  Herald 
in  18 19,  and  later  the  Painesville  (Ohio)  Telegraph.  Living  near  the  scene  of  the 
Mormon  activity  in  Ohio  when  they  moved  to  that  state,  and  desiring  to  ascer- 
tain the  character  of  the  men  who  were  proclaiming  a  new  Bible  and  a  new 
church,  he  sent  agents  to  secure  such  information  among  the  Smiths'  old 
acquaintances  in  New  York  and  Pennsylvania,  and  made  inquiries  on  kindred 
subjects,  like  the  "  Spaulding  manuscript."  His  book  was  the  first  serious  blow 
that  Smith  and  his  associates  encountered,  and  their  wrath  against  it  and  its 
author  was  fierce. 

Pomeroy  Tucker,  the  author  of  "  Origin  and  Progress  of  the  Mormons " 
(New  York,  1867),  was  personally  acquainted  with  the  Smiths  and  with  Harris 
and  Cowdery  before  and  after  the  appearance  of  the  Mormon  Bible.  He  read  a 
good  deal  of  the  proof  of  the  original  edition  of  that  book  as  it  was  going  through 
the  press,  and  was  present  during  many  of  the  negotiations  with  Grandin  about 
its  publication.  His  testimony  in  regard  to  early  matters  connected  with  the 
church  is  important. 

Two  non-Mormons  who  had  an  early  view  of  the  church  in  Utah  and  who 
put  their  observations  in  book  form  were  B.  G.  Ferris  ("Utah  and  the  Mor- 
mons," New  York,  1854  and  1856)  and  Lieutenant  J.  W.  Gunnison  of  the  United 
States  Topographical  Engineers  ("The  Mormons,"  Philadelphia,  1856).  Both 
of  these  works  contain  interesting  pictures  of  life  in  Utah  in  those  early  days. 

There  are  three  comprehensive  histories  of  Utah,  —  H.  H.  Bancroft's  "His- 
tory of  Utah  "  (1889),  Tullidge's  "  History  of  Salt  Lake  City  "  (1886),  and  Orson 
F.  Whitney's  "History  of  Utah,"  in  four  volumes,  three  of  which,  dated  respec- 
tively March,  1892,  April,  1893,  and  January,  1898,  have  been  issued.  The  Re- 
organized Church  has  also  published  a  "  History  of  the  Church  of  Jesus  Christ 
of  Latter  Day  Saints  "  in  three  volumes.  While  Bancroft's  work  professes  to  be 
written  from  a  secular  standpoint,  it  is  really  a  church  production,  the  preparation 
of  the  text  having  been  confided  to  Mormon  hands.  "We  furnished  Mr.  Ban- 
croft with  his  material,"  said  a  prominent  Mormon  church  officer  to  me.  Its 
plan  is  to  give  the  Mormon  view  in  the  text,  and  to  refer  the  reader  for  the  other 
side  to  a  mass  of  undigested  notes,  and  its  principal  value  to  the  student  consists 
in  its  references  to  other  authorities.  Its  general  tone  may  be  seen  in  its  decla- 
ration that  those  who  have  joined  the  church  to  expose  its  secrets  are  "the  most 
contemptible  of  all " ;  that  those  who  have  joined  it  honestly  and,  discovering 
what  company  they  have  got  into,  have  given  the  information  to  the  world, 
would  far  better  have  gone  their  way  and  said  nothing  about  it ;  and,  as  to 
polygamy,  that  "  those  who  waxed  the  hottest  against  "  the  practice  "  are  not  as 
a  rule  the  purest  of  our  people"  (p.  361)  ;  and  that  the  Edmunds  Law  of  1882 
"capped  the  climax  of  absurdity"  (p.  683). 


PREFACE 


IX 


Tullidge  wrote  his  history  after  he  had  taken  part  in  the  "New  Movement." 
In  it  he  brought  together  a  great  deal  of  information,  including  the  text  of  impor- 
tant papers,  which  is  necessary  to  an  understanding  of  the  growth  and  struggles 
of  the  church.  The  work  was  censored  by  a  committee  appointed  by  the  Mormon 
authorities. 

Bishop  Whitney's  history  presents  the  pro-Mormon  view  of  the  church 
throughout.  It  is  therefore  wholly  untrustworthy  as  a  guide  to  opinion  on  the 
subjects  treated,  but,  like  Tullidge's,  it  supplies  a  good  deal  of  material  which  is 
useful  to  the  student  who  is  prepared  to  estimate  its  statements  at  their  true 
value. 

The  acquisition  by  the  New  York  Public  Library  of  the  Berrian  collection 
of  books,  early  newspapers,  and  pamphlets  on  Mormonism,  with  the  additions 
constantly  made  to  this  collection,  places  within  the  reach  of  the  student  all  the 
material  that  is  necessary  for  the  formation  of  the  fairest  judgment  on  the  subject. 

W.  A.  L. 

Hackensack,  N.  J.,  1901. 


CONTENTS 

BOOK    I 

THE  MORMON  ORIGIN 

CHAPTER  I 


CHAPTER  V 


PAGE 


Facility  of  Human  Belief:  The  Real  Miracle  of  Mormon  Success — Effrontery 
of  the  Leaders'  Professions  —  Attractiveness  of  Religious  Beliefs  to  Man  — 
Wherein  the  World  does  not  make  Progress  —  The  Anglo-Saxon  Appetite  for 
Religious  Novelties I 

CHAPTER   II 

The  Smith  Family:  Solomon  Mack  and  his  Autobiography  —  Religious  Char- 
acteristics of  the  Prophet's  Mother — The  Family  Life  in  Vermont  —  Early 
Occupations  in  New  York  State  —  Pictures  of  the  Prophet  as  a  Youth  — 
Recollections  of  the  Smiths  by  their  New  York  Neighbors       ....         8 

CHAPTER   III 

How  Joseph  Smith  became  a  Money-digger:  His  Use  of  a  Divining  Rod  — 
His  First  Introduction  to  Crystal-gazing — Peeping  after  Hidden  Treasure  — 
How  Joseph  obtained  his  own  "  Peek-stone  "  —  Methods  of  Midnight  Money- 
digging    15 

CHAPTER   IV 

First  Announcement  of  the  Golden  Bible  :  Variations  in  the  Early  Descrip- 
tions—  Joseph's  Acquaintance  with  the  Hales —  His  Elopement  and  Marriage 
—  What  he  told  a  Neighbor  about  the  Origin  of  his  Bible  Discovery  —  Early 
Anecdotes  about  the  Book         ..... 


23 


v^  The  Different  Accounts  of  the  Revelation  of  the  Bible:  The  Versions 
about  the  Spanish  Guardian  —  Important  Statement  by  the  Prophet's  Father 
—  The  Later  Account  in  the  Prophet's  Autobiography — The  Angel  Visitor 
and  the  Acquisition  of  the  Plates  —  Mother  Smith's  Version    ....       28 

CHAPTER   VI 

\  Translation  and  Publication  of  the  Bible  :  Martin  Harris's  Connection  with 
the  Work  —  Smith's  Removal  to  Pennsylvania  —  How  the  Translation  was 


Xii  CONTENTS 

PAGE 

carried  on —  Harris's  Visit  to  Professor  Anthon  —  The  Professor's  Account  of 
his  Visit  —  The  Lost  Pages  —  The  Prophet's  Predicament  and  his  Method  of 
Escape  —  Oliver  Cowdery  as  an  Assistant  Translator  —  Introduction  of  the 
Whitmers  —  The  Printing  and  Proof-reading  of  the  New  Bible  —  Recollec- 
tions of  Survivors     ............       35 

CHAPTER   VII 

The  Spaulding  Manuscript:  Solomon  Spaulding's  Career  —  History  of  "The 
Manuscript  Found "  —  Statements  by  Members  of  the  Author's  Family  — 
Testimony  of  Spaulding's  Ohio  Neighbors  about  the  Resemblance  of  his  Story 
to  the  Book  of  Mormon — The  Manuscript  found  in  the  Sandwich  Islands      .       50 


CHAPTER   VIII 

Sidney  Rigdon  :  His  Biography  —  Connection  with  the  Campbells  —  Efficient 
Church  Work  in  Ohio  —  His  Jealousy  of  his  Church  Leaders  —  Disciples' 
Beliefs  and  Mormon  Doctrines  —  Intimations  about  a  New  Bible — Rigdon's 
First  Connection  with  Smith — The  Rigdon-Smith  Translation  of  the  Scriptures 

—  Rigdon's  Conversion  to  Mormonism    ........       59 

CHAPTER   IX 

"The  Everlasting  Gospel":  Probable  Origin  of  the  Idea  of  a  Bible  on  Plates 

—  Cyril's  Gift  from  an  Angel  and  Joachim's  Use  of  it  —  Where  Rigdon  could 
have  obtained  the  Idea  —  Prominence  of  the  "  Everlasting  Gospel"  in  Mormon 
Writings 74 

CHAPTER   X 

The  Witnesses  to  the  Plates:  Text  of  the  Two  "Testimonies" — The  Proph- 
et's Explanation  of  the  First  —  Early  Reputation  and  Subsequent  History  of 
the  Signers  —  The  Truth  about  the  Kinderhook  Plates  and  Rafinesque's 
Glyphs 78 

CHAPTER   XI 

The  Mormon  Bible:  Some  of  its  Errors  and  Absurdities — Facsimile  of  the  First 
Edition  Title-page  —  The  Historical  Narrative  of  the  Book — Its  Lack  of 
Literary  Style  —  Appropriated  Chapters  of  the  Scriptures  —  Specimen 
Anachronisms  .............       89 

CHAPTER   XII 

Organization  of  the  Church:  Smith's  Ordination  by  John  the  Baptist  —  The 
First  Baptisms  —  Early  Branches  of  the  Church  —  The  Revelation  about 
Church  Officers  —  Cowdery's  Ambition  and  how  it  was  repressed  —  Smith's 
Title  as  Seer,  Translator,  and  Prophet  —  His  Arrest  and  Release  —  Arrival  of 
Parley  P.  Pratt  and  Rigdon  in  Palmyra  —  The  Command  to  remove  to  Ohio    .       99 


CONTENTS  xui 


CHAPTER   XIII 

PAGE 

The  Mormons'  Beliefs  and  Doctrines  —  Church  Government  :  Long  Years 
of  Apostasy  —  Origin  of  the  Name  "  Mormon  "  —  Original  Titles  of  the  Church 

Belief  in  a  Speedy  Millennium — The  Future  Possession  of  the  Earth  — 

Smith's  Revelations  and  how  they  were  obtained  —  The  First  Published  Edi- 
tions—Counterfeit Revealers  — What  is  taught  of  God— Brigham  Young's 
Adam  Sermon  — Baptism  for  the  Dead— The  Church  Officers         .         .         .107 


BOOK    II 

IN  OHIO 

CHAPTER   I 

The  First  Converts  at  Kirtland:  Original  Missionaries  sent  out  to  the 
Lamanites  —  Organization  of  a  Church  in  Ohio  —  Effect  of  Rigdon's  Conver- 
sion—General Interest  in  the  New  Bible  and  Prophet  —  How  Men  of  Educa- 
tion came  to  believe  in  Mormonism  —  Result  of  the  Upturning  of  Religious 
Belief ,22 

CHAPTER   II 

Wild  Vagaries  of  the  Converts:  Convulsions  and  Commissions  —  Common 
Religious  Excitements  of  those  Days  —  Description  of  the  "  Jerks  "  —  Smith's 
Repressing  Influence         .         .         .         .         •         •         •         •         •         •         .128 

CHAPTER    III 

Growth  of  the  Church  :  The  Appointment  of  Elders—  Beginning  of  the  Prose- 
lyting System  —  Smith's  Power  entrenched  —  His  Temporal  Provision  — 
Repression  of  Rigdon  — The  Tarring  and  Feathering  of  Smith  and  Rigdon  — 
Treatment  of  the  Mormons  and  of  Other  New  Denominations  compared  — 
Rigdon's  Punishment J3r 

CHAPTER   IV 

Gifts  of  Tongues  and  Miracles:  How  Persons  "  spoke  in  Tongues  "  —  Seeing 
the  Lord  Face  to  Face—  Early  Use  of  Miracles  —  The  Story  of  the  "  Book  of 
Abraham" — The  Prophet  as  a  Translator  of  Greek  and  Egyptian  .         .         .     138 

CHAPTER   V 

Smith's  Ohio  Business  Enterprises  :  Young's  Picture  of  the  Prophet's  Experi- 
ence as  a  Retail  Merchant  — The  Land  Speculation— Laying  out  of  the  City 
—  Building  of  the  Temple  —  Consecration  of  Property  —  How  the  Leaders 
looked  out  for  themselves  —  Amusing  Explanation  of  Section  in  of  the 
"  Doctrine  and  Covenants  "—The  Story  of  the  Kirtland  Bank  —The  Church 
View  of  its  Responsibility  for  the  Currency  — The  Business  Crash  and  Smith's 
Flight  to  Missouri 1   2 


xiv  CONTENTS 


CHAFl'ER   VI 


Last  Days  at  Kirtland  :  Pictures  of  the  Prophet  —  Accusations  against  Church 
Leaders  in  Missouri  —  Serious  Charge  against  the  Prophet  —  W.  W.  Phelps's 
Rebellion  —  Smith's  Description  of  Leading  Lights  of  the  Church  —  Charges 
concerning  Smith's  Morality — The  Church  accused  of  practising  Polygamy  — 
A  Lively  Fight  at  a  Church  Service — Smith's  and  Rigdon's  Defence  of  their 
Conduct — The  Later  History  of  Kirtland 153 


BOOK   III 

IN  MISSOURI 

CHAPTER  I 

The  Directions  to  the  Saints  about  their  Zion  :  Western  Missouri  in  the 
Early  Days  —  Pioneer  Farming  and  Home-making  —  The  Trip  of  the  Four 
Mormon  Missionaries  —  Direction  about  the  gathering  of  the  Elect  —  How 
they  were  to  possess  the  Land  of  Promise  — Their  Appropriation  of  the  Good 
Things  purchased  of  their  Enemies  .........     161 

CHAPTER   II 

Smith's  First  Visits  to  Missouri  :  Founding  the  City  of  Zion  and  the  Temple 
—  Marvellous  Stories  that  were  told  —  Dissatisfaction  of  Some  of  the 
Prophet's  Companions     .         .         . .166 

CHAPTER    III 

The  Expulsion  from  Jackson  County  :  Rapid  Influx  of  Mormons  —  Result  of 
the  Publication  of  the  Revelations  —  First  Friction  with  their  Non-Mormon 
Neighbors  —  Manifesto  of  the  Mormons'  Opponents  —  Their  Big  Mass  Meet- 
ing—  Demands  on  the  Mormons  —  Destruction  of  the  Star  Printing-office  — 
The  Mormons'  Agreement  to  leave  —  Smith's  Advice  to  his  Flock  —  Repudia- 
tion of  the  Mormon  Agreement  and  Renewal  of  Hostilities — The  Battle  at 
Big  Blue — Evacuation  of  the  County — March  of  the  Army  of  Zion  —  An 
Inglorious  Finale 169 

CHAPTER   IV 

Fruitless  Negotiations  with  the  Jackson  County  People:  A  Fair  Offer 
rejected  —  The  Mormon  Counter  Propositions — Governor  Dunklin  on  the 
Situation 182 

CHAPTER  V 

In  Clay,  Caldwell,  and  Daviess  Counties:  Welcome  of  the  Mormons  by 
New  Neighbors  —  Effect  of  their  Claims  about  possessing  the  Land  —  Ordered 
out  of  Clay  County  —  Founding  of  Far  West  —  A  Welcome  to  Smith  and 
Rigdon 185 


CONTENTS  XV 


CHAPTER  VI 

PAGE 

Radical  Dissensions  in  the  Church:  Trial  of  Phelps  and  Whitmer  —  Convic- 
tion of  Oliver  Cowdery  on  Serious  Charges— Expulsion  of  Leading  Members 

—  Origin  of  the  Danites  —  Suggested  by  the   Prophet  at  Kirtland  —  The 
Danite  Constitution  and  Oath  — Origin  of  the  Tithing  System  .         .         .188 

CHAPTER   VII 

Beginning  of  Active  Hostilities:  Result  of  Smith's  Domineering  Course  — 
Jealousy  caused  by  the  Scattering  of  the  Saints— Founding  of  Adam-ondi- 
Ahman  —  Rigdon's  Famous  Salt  Sermon  — Open  Defiance  of  the  Non-Mormons 

—  The  Mormons  in  Politics  — An  Election  Day  Row  — Arrests  and  Threats    .     195 

CHAPTER   VIII 

A  State  of  Civil  War:  Calling  out  of  the  Militia  —  Proposed  Expulsion  of  the 
Mormons  from  Carroll  County  — The  Siege  of  De  Witt  — The  Prophet's  Defi- 
ance—  Work  of  his  "Fur  Company" — Gentile  Retaliation — The  Battle  of 
Crooked  River  — The  Massacre  at  Hawn's  Mills  —  Governor  Boggs's  "Order 
of  Extermination  " 2°° 

CHAPTER   IX 

The  Final  Expulsion  from  the  State  :  General  Lucas's  Terms  to  the  Mormons 

Surrender  of  Far  West  and  Arrest  of  Mormon  Leaders  —  General  Clark's 

Address  to  the  Mormons'— His  Report  to  the  Governor  —  General  Wilson's 
Picture  of  Adam-ondi-Ahman  —  Fate  of  the  Mormon  Prisoners  — Testimony 
at  their  Trial  — Smith's  Escape  — Migration  to  Illinois 208 


BOOK   IV 

IN  ILLINOIS 

CHAPTER   I 

The  Reception  of  the  Mormons  :   Incidents  in  the  Early  History  of  the  State 

—  Defiant  Lawlessness  —  Politicians  the  First  to  welcome  the  New-comers  — 
Landowners  among  their  First  Friends 2I9 

CHAPTER   II 

The  Settlement  of  Nauvoo  :  Smith's  Leadership  illustrated  —  The  Land  Pur- 
chases —  A  Reconciliation  of  Conflicting  Revelations  —  Smith's  Financiering 

—  Shameful  Misrepresentation  to  Immigrants 223 

CHAPTER   III 

The  Building  up  of  the  City  :  Unhealthfulness  of  its  Site  —  Rapid  Growth  of 
the  Place  —  Early  Pictures  of  it  —  Foreign  Proselyting  —  Why  England  was  a 
Good  Field  — Method  of  Work  there— The  Employment  of  Miracles— How 
the  Converts  were  sent  over 22° 


xvi  CONTENTS 


CHAPTER  IV 

PAGE 

The  Nauvoo  City  Government  :  Dr.  Galland's  Suggestions  —  An  Important 
Revelation  —  Church  Buildings  ordered — Subserviency  of  the  Legislature  — 
Dr.  John  C.  Bennett's  Efficient  Aid  —  Authority  granted  to  the  City  Gov- 
ernment —  The  Nauvoo  Legion  —  Bennett's  Welcome  —  The  Temple  and 
how  it  was  constructed     ...........     234 

CHAPTER   V 

The  Mormons  in  Politics  :  Smith's  Decree  against  Van  Buren  —  How  the 
Prophet  swung  the  Mormon  Vote  back  to  the  Democrats  —  The  Attempted 
Assassination  of  Governor  Boggs  —  Smith's  Arrest  and  what  resulted  from  it 

—  Defeat  of  a  Whig  Candidate  by  a  Revelation        ......     243 

CHAPTER   VI 

Smith  a  Candidate  for  President  of  the  United  States:  His  Letter  to 
Clay  and  Calhoun — Their  Replies  and  Smith's  Abusive  Wrath — The  Prophet's 
Views  on  National  Politics  —  Reform  Measures  that  he  proposed  —  His 
Nomination  by  the  Church  Paper  —  Experiences  of  Missionaries  sent  out  to 
work  up  his  Campaign     ...........     250 

CHAPTER   VII 

Social  Conditions  in  Nauvoo:  Character  of  its  Population  —  Treatment  of 
Immigrant  Converts  —  Some  Disreputable  Gentile  Neighbors  —  The  Com- 
plaints of  Mormon  Stealings  —  Significant  Admissions — Mormon  Protection 
against  Outsiders — The  Whittlers 256 

CHAPTER   VIII 

Smith's  Picture  of  himself  as  Autocrat:  Glances  at  his  Autobiography  — 
Difficulties  connected  with  the  Building  Enterprises  —  A  Plain  Warning  to 
Discontented  Workmen — Trouble  with  Rigdon — Pressed  by  his  Creditors 

—  Transaction  with  Remick — Currency  Law  passed  by  his  City  Council  — 
How  Smith  regarded  himself  as  a  Prophet  —  His  Latest  Prophecies         .         .     262 

CHAPTER   IX 

Smith's  falling  out  with  Bennett  and  Higbee:  Bennett's  Expulsion  and 
the  Explanations  concerning  it  —  His  Attacks  on  his  Late  Companions  — 
Charges  against  Nauvoo  Morality  —  The  Case  of  Nancy  Rigdon  —  The  Higbee 
Incident  ..............     268 

CHAPTER   X 

The  Institution  of  Polygamy  :  An  Examination  of  its  Origin  —  Its  Conflict 
with  the  Teachings  of  the  Mormon  Bible  and  Revelations —  Early  Loosening 
of  the  Marriage  View  under  Smith  —  Proof  of  the  Practice  of  Polygamy  in 
Nauvoo  —  Testimony  of  Eliza  R.  Snow  —  How  her  Brother  Lorenzo  shook 


CONTENTS  xvii 

PAGE 

off  his  Bachelorhood  —  John  B.  Lee  as  a  Polygamist  —  Ebenezer  Robinson's 
Statement  —  Objects  of  "The  Holy  Order" — The  Writing  of  the  Revelation 
about  Polygamy  —  Its  First  Public  Announcement  —  Sidney  Rigdon's  Inno- 
cence in  the  Matter 272 

CHAPTER   XI 

Public  Announcement  of  the  Doctrine  of  Polygamy:  Text  of  the  Revela- 
tion—  Orson  Pratt's  Presentation  of  it  —  The  Doctrine  of  Sealing  —  Necessity 
of  Sealing  as  a  means  of  Salvation  —  Attempt  to  show  that  Christ  was  a 
Polygamist 282 

CHAPTER   XII 

The  Suppression  of  the  Expositor :  Dr.  Foster  and  the  Laws  —  Rebellion 
against  Smith's  Teachings  —  Leading  Features  of  the  Expositor  —  Trial  of 
the  Paper  and  its  Editors  before  the  City  Council  —  Destruction  of  the  Press 
and  Type  —  Smith's  Proclamation    .........     290 

CHAPTER   XIII 

Uprising  of  the  Non-Mormons:  Resolutions  adopted  at  Warsaw  —  Organizing 
and  Arming  of  the  People  —  Action  of  Governor  Ford  —  Smith's  Arrest  — 
Departure  of  the  Prisoners  for  Carthage  . 297 

CHAPTER   XIV 

The  Murder  of  the  Prophet:  Legal  Proceedings  after  his  Arrival  in  Carthage 

—  The  Governor  and  the  Militia  —  The  Carthage  Jail  and  its  Guards  —  Action 
of  the  Warsaw  Regiment — The  Attack  on  the  Jail  and  the  Killing  of  the 
Prophet  and  his  Brother  —  Funeral  Services  in  Nauvoo  —  Final  Resting-place 
of  the  Bodies — Result  of  Indictments  of  the  Alleged  Murderers  —  Review  of 

the  Prophet's  Character 301 

CHAPTER   XV 

After  Smith's  Death:  The  People  in  a  Panic  —  The  Mormon  Leaders  for  Peace 

—  The  Future  Government  of  the  Church  —  Brigham  Young's  Victory  — 
Rigdon's  Trial  before  the  High  Council  —  Verdict  against  him —  His  Church 
in  Pennsylvania  —  His  Ambition  to  be  the  Head  of  a  Distinct  Church  —  A 
Visit  from  Heavenly  Messengers  —  His  Last  Days  ......     313 

CHAPTER   XVI 

Rivalries  over  the  Succession  :  The  Claim  of  the  Prophet's  Eldest  Son  — 
Trouble  caused  by  the  Prophet's  Widow  —  The  Reorganized  Church  — 
Strang's  Church  in  Wisconsin  —  Lyman  Wight's  Colony  in  Texas    .         .         .     322 

CHAPTER   XVII 

Brigham  Young:  His  Early  Years — His  Initiation  into  the  Mormon  Church  — 
Fidelity  to  the  Prophet  —  Embarrassments  of  his  Position  as  Head  of  the 
Church  —  His  View  about  Revelations  —  Plan  for  Home  Mission  Work  — 
His  Election  as  President 327 


xviii  CONTENTS 


CHAPTER   XVIII 

PAGE 

Renewed  Trouble  for  the  Mormons  :  More  Charges  of  Stealing  —  Significant 
Admission  by  Young  —  Business  Plight  of  Nauvoo  —  More  Politics  —  Defiant 
Attitude  of  Mormon  Leaders  —  An  Editor's  View  of  Legal  Rights  —  Stories 
about  the  Danites  —  Brother  William  on  Brigham  Young  —  The  "Burnings" 

—  Sheriff  Backenstos's  Proclamations  —  Lieutenant  Worrell's  Murder — Mor- 
mon Retaliation —  Appointment  of  the  Douglas-Hardin  Commission       .         .     331 

CHAPTER   XIX 

The  Expulsion  of  the  Mormons  :  General  Hardin's  Proclamation  —  County 
Meetings  of  Non-Mormons — Their  Ultimatum  —  The  Commission's  Negotia- 
tions —  Non-Mormon  Convention  at  Carthage  —  The  Agreement  for  the 
Mormon  Evacuation 338 

CHAPTER   XX 

The  Evacuation  of  Nauvoo  :  Major  Warren  as  a  Peace  Preserver  —  The  Mor- 
mons' Disposition  of  their  Property  —  Departure  of  the  Leaders  hastened  by 
Indictments  —  Arrival  of  New  Citizens  —  Continued  Hostility  of  the  Non- 
Mormons —  "The  Last  Mormon  War"  —  Panic  in  Nauvoo  —  Plan  for  a 
March  on  the  Mormon  City  —  Fruitless  Negotiations  for  a  Compromise  — 
The  Advance  against  the  City  —  The  Battle  and  its  Results  —  Terms  of  Peace 

—  The  Final  Evacuation.         ..........     343 

CHAPTER   XXI 

Nauvoo  after  the  Exodus:  Arrival  of  Governor  Ford  —  The  Final  Work  on 
the  Temple  —  The  "  Endowment  "  Ceremony  and  Oath  —  Futile  Efforts  to 
sell  the  Temple  —  Its  Destruction  by  Fire  and  Wind  —  The  Nauvoo  of  To-day     352 


BOOK   V 
THE  MIGRATION  TO   UTAH 

CHAPTER  I 

Preparations  for  the  Long  March:  Uncertainty  of  their  Destination  —  Expla- 
nations to  the  People — Disposition  of  Real  and  Personal  Property  —  Collec- 
tion of  Draft  Animals  —  Activity  in  Wagon  and  Tent  Making  —  The  Old 
Charge  of  Counterfeiting  —  Pecuniary  Sacrifices  of  the  Mormons  in  Illinois     .     357 

CHAPTER   II 

From  the  Mississippi  to  the  Missouri  :  The  First  Crossings  of  the  River  — 
Camp  Arrangements  —  Sufferings  from  the  Cold  —  The  Story  of  the  Westward 
March  —  Motley  Make-up  of  the  Procession  —  Expedients  for  obtaining 
Supplies  —  Terrible  Sufferings  of  the  Expelled  Remnant  —  Privations  at 
Mt.  Pisgah 302 


CONTENTS  XIX 


CHAPTER   III 


The  Mormon  Battalion  :  Extravagant  Claims  regarding  it  disproved  —  General 
Kearney's  Invitation  —  Source  of  the  Initial  Suggestion— How  the  Mormons 
profited  by  the  Organization  — The  March  to  California  —  Colonel  Thomas 
L.  Kane's  Visit  to  the  Missouri  —  His  Intimate  Relations  with  the  Mormon 
Church 371 

CHAPTER   IV 

The  Camps  on  the  Missouri:  Friendly  Welcome  of  the  Mormons  by  the 
Indians  — The  Site  of  Winter  Quarters  —  Busy  Scenes  on  the  River  Bank- 
Sickness  and  Death— The  Building  of  a  Temporary  City         .         .         .         -375 

CHAPTER   V 

The  Pioneer  Trip  across  the  Plains  :    Early  Views  of  the  Unexplored  West 

The  First  White  Visitors  to  that  Country  —  Organization  of  the  Pioneer 

Mormon  Band — Rules  observed  on  the  March — Successful  Buffalo  Hunting 

—  An  Indian  Alarm  —  Dearth  of  Forage  —  Post-offices  of  the  Plains  — A 
Profitable  Ferry 379 

CHAPTER   VI 

From  the  Rockies  to  Salt  Lake  Valley  :  No  Definite  Stopping-place  in  View 

—  Advice  received  on  the  Way — The  Mormon  Expedition  to  California  by 
Way  of  Cape  Horn  —  Brannan's  Fall  from  Grace  —  Westward  from  Green 
River — Advance  Explorers  through  a  Canon  —  First  View  of  Great  Salt  Lake 
Valley  —  Irrigation  and  Crop  Planting  begun 385 


CHAPTER   VII 

The  Following  Companies  :  Their  Leaders  and  Make-up  —  Young's  Return 
Trip  —  Last  Days  on  the  Missouri  —  Scheme  for  a  Permanent  Settlement  in 
Iowa  —  Westward  March  of  Large  Companies 392 


BOOK   VI 
IN  UTAH 

CHAPTER   I 

The  Founding  of  Salt  Lake  City:  Utah's  First  White  Explorers  —  First 
Mormon  Services  in  the  Valley  —  Young's  View  of  the  Right  to  the  Land  — 
The  First  Buildings  —  Laying  out  the  City  —  Early  Crop  Disappointment  — 
Discomforts  of  the  First  Winter  —  Primitive  Dwelling-places  —  The  Visitation 
of  Crickets  —  Glowing  Accounts  sent  to  England 395 


XX  CONTENTS 


CHAPTER  II 


Progress  of  the  Settlement  :  Schools  and  Manufactures  —  How  the  City 
appeared  in  1849  —  Sufferings  during  the  Winter  of  1848  —  Immigration 
checked  by  the  Lack  of  Food  —  Aid  supplied  by  the  California  Gold-seekers 
—  Danger  of  a  Mormon  Exodus  —  Young's  Rebuke  to  his  Gold-seeking 
Followers  —  The  Crop  Failure  of  1855  and  the  Famine  of  the  Following 
Winter — The  Tabernacle  and  Temple 402 

CHAPTER   III 

The  Foreign  Immigration  to  Utah:  The  Commercial  Joint  Stock  Company 
Scandal  —  Deceptive  Statements  made  to  Foreign  Converts  —  John  Taylor's 
Address  to  the  Saints  in  Great  Britain  —  Petition  to  Queen  Victoria  —  Mormon 
Duplicity  illustrated  —  Young's  Advice  to  Emigrants  —  Glowing  Pictures  of 
Salt  Lake  Valley — The  Perpetual  Emigrating  Fund — Details  of  the  Emi- 
gration System 410 

CHAPTER   IV 

The  Hand-cart  Tragedy:  Young's  Scheme  for  Economy  —  His  Responsibility 
for  the  Hand-cart  Experiment  —  Details  of  the  Arrangement  —  Delays  at 
Iowa  City  —  Unheeded  Warnings  —  Privations  by  the  Way  —  Early  Lack  of 
Provisions  —  Suffering  caused  by  Insufficient  Clothing — Deaths  of  the  Old 
and  Infirm  —  Horrors  of  the  Camps  in  the  Mountains  —  Frozen  Corpses 
found  at  Daybreak  —  Sufferings  of  a  Party  at  Devil's  Gate  —  Young's  At- 
tempt to  shift  the  Responsibility 418 

CHAPTER  V 

Early  Political  History:  The  Aim  at  Independence  —  First  Local  Govern- 
ment—  Adoption  of  a  Constitution  for  the  State  of  Deseret — Babbitt's 
Application  for  Admission  as  a  Delegate  —  Memorial  opposing  his  Claim  — 
His  Rejection  —  The  Territorial  Government 42^ 

CHAPTER   VI 

Brigham  Young's  Despotism:  Causes  that  contributed  to  its  Success  —  Help- 
lessness of  the  New-comers  from  Europe  —  Influence  of  Superstition  — 
Young's  Treatment  of  the  Gladdenites  —  His  Appropriation  of  Property  — 
Laws  passed  by  the  Mormon  Legislature  —  Bishops  as  Ward  Magistrates  — 
A  Mormon  Currency  and  Alphabet  —  What  Emigrants  to  California  learned 
about  Mormon  Justice 433 

CHAPTER  VII 

The  "  Reformation  "  :  Young's  Disclosures  about  the  Character  of  his  Flock  — 
The  Stealing  from  One  Another  — The  Threat  about  "Laying  Judgment  to 
the  Line"  —  Plain  Declarations  about  the  taking  of  Human  Lives  —  First 
Steps  of  the  "Reformation"  —  An  Inquisition  and  Catechism  —  An  Embar- 
rassing Confession —  Warning  to  those  who  would  leave  the  Valley         .         .     441 


CONTENTS  xxi 

CHAPTER  VIII 

PAGE 

Some  Church-inspired  Murders:  The  Story  of  the  Parrishes  —  Carrying  out  of 
a  Cold-blooded  Plot— Judge  Cradlebaugh's  Effort  to  convict  the  Murderers 
—  The  Tragedy  of  the  Aikin  Party  —  The  Story  of  Frederick  Loba's  Escape   .     448 

CHAPTER   IX 

Blood  Atonement  :  Early  Intimations  concerning  it  —  Jedediah  M.  Grant's  Ex- 
planation of  Human  Sacrifices  —  Brigham  Young's  Definition  of  "  Laying 
Judgment  to  the  Line" — Two  of  the  Sacrifices  described  —  "The  Affair  at 
San  Pete" 454 

CHAPTER   X 

Territorial  Government:  Brigham  Young  the  First  Governor — Colonel  Kane's 
Part  in  his  Appointment  —  Kane's  False  Statements  to  President  Fillmore  — 
Welcome  to  the  Non-Mormon  Officers — Their  Early  Information  about  Young's 
Influence  —  Pioneer  Anniversary  Speeches  —  Judge  Brocchus's  Offence  to  the 
Mormons  —  Young's  Threatening  and  Abusive  Reply  —  The  Judge's  Alarm 
about  his  Personal  Safety  —  Return  of  the  Non-Mormon  Federal  Officers  to 
Washington  —  Young's  Defence 45^ 

CHAPTER   XI 

Mormon  Treatment  of  Federal  Officers:  A  Territorial  Election  Law  — 
Why  Colonel  Steptoe  declined  the  Governorship  —  Young's  Assertion  of  his 
Authority  —  His  Reappointment  —  Two  Bad  Judicial  Appointments  —  Judge 
Stiles's  Trouble  about  the  Marshals  —  Burning  of  his  Books  and  Papers  — 
How  Judge  Drummond's  Attempt  at  Independence  was  foiled — The  Mormon 
View  of  Land  Titles  —  Hostile  Attitude  toward  the  Government  Surveyors  — 
Reports  of  the  Indian  Agents 467 


CHAFrER   XII 

The  Mormon  "  War  " :  What  the  Federal  Authorities  had  learned  about  Mor- 
monism — Declaration  of  the  Republican  National  Convention  of  1856  — 
Striking  Speech  by  Stephen  A.  Douglas  —  Alfred  Cumming  appointed  Gov- 
ernor with  a  New  Set  of  Judges  —  Statement  in  the  President's  Message  — 
Employment  of  a  Military  Force  —  The  Kimball  Mail  Contract  —  Organiza- 
tion of  the  Troops  —  General  Harney's  Letter  of  Instruction  —  Threats  against 
the  Advancing  Foe  —  Mobilization  of  the  Nauvoo  Legion  —  Captain  Van 
Vliet's  Mission  to  Salt  Lake  City  —  Young's  Defiance  of  the  Government  — 
His  Proclamation  to  the  Citizens  of  Utah  —  "  General  "  Wells's  Order  to  his 
Officers  —  Capture  and  Burning  of  a  Government  Train  —  Colonel  Alexander's 
Futile  March  —  Colonel  Johnston's  Advance  from  Fort  Laramie  —  Harrowing 
Experience  of  Lieutenant  Colonel  Cooke's  Command 476 


xxil  CONTENTS 


CHAPTER   XIII 

PAGE 

The  Mormon  Purpose:  Correspondence  between  Colonel  Alexander  and  Brig- 
ham  Young  —  Illustration  of  Young's  Vituperative  Powers  —  John  Taylor's 
Threat  —  Incendiary  Teachings  in  Salt  Lake  City — A  Warning  to  Saints  who 
would  desert  —  The  Army's  Winter  Camp — Proclamation  by  Governor  Cum- 
ming  —  Judge  Eckles's  Court  —  Futile  Preparations  at  Washington  .         .     494 

CHAPTER  XIV 

Colonel  Kane's  Mission  :  His  Wily  Proposition  to  President  Buchanan  —  His 
Credentials  from  the  President  —  Arrival  in  California  under  an  Assumed 
Name  —  Visit  to  Camp  Scott  —  General  Johnston  ignored  —  Reasons  why 
both  the  Government  and  the  Mormons  desired  Peace  —  Kane's  Success  with 
Governor  Cumming — The  Governor's  Departure  for  Salt  Lake  City  —  De- 
ceptions practiced  on  him  in  Echo  Cafion  —  His  Reception  in  the  City  — 
Playing  into  Mormon  Hands  —  The  Governor's  Introduction  to  the  People  — 
Exodus  of  Mormons  begun 501 

CHAPTER   XV 

The  Peace  Commission:  President  Buchanan's  Volte-face  —  A  Proclamation  of 
Pardon  —  Instructions  to  Two  Peace  Commissioners  —  Chagrin  of  the  Military 

—  Governor  Cumming's  Misrepresentations  —  Conferences  between  the  Com- 
missioners and  Young  —  Brother  Dunbar's  Singing  of  "Zion" — Young's 
Method  of  Surrender  —  Judge  Eckles  on  Plural  Marriages  —  The  Terms 
made  with  the  Mormons  —  March  of  the  Federal  Troops  to  the  Deserted  City 

—  Return  of  the  Mormons  to  their  Homes 511 

CHAPTER   XVI 

The  Mountain  Meadows  Massacre:  Circumstances  Indicative  of  Mormon  Offi- 
cial Responsibility —  The  Make-up  of  the  Arkansas  Party  —  Motives  for  Mor- 
mon Hostility  to  them  —  Parley  P.  Pratt's  Shooting  in  Arkansas  —  Refusal  of 
Food  Supplies  to  the  Party  after  leaving  Salt  Lake  City  — Their  Plight  before 
they  were  attacked  —  Successful  Measures  for  Defence  —  Disarrangement  of 
the  Mormon  Plans  —  John  D.  Lee's  Treacherous  Mission  —  Pitiless  Slaughter 
of  Men,  Women,  and  Children  — Testimony  given  at  Lee's  Trial  — The  Plun- 
dering of  the  Dead  —  Lee's  Account  of  the  Planning  of  the  Massacre  —  Re- 
sponsibility of  High  Church  Officers  —  Lee's  Report  to  Brigham  Young  and 
Brigham's  Instructions  to  him— The  Disclosures  by  " Argus "  —  Lee's  Execu- 
tion and  Last  Words         .         .         .         •         •         •         •         •         •         •         •     5!7 

CHAPTER   XVII 

After  the  "  War  "  :  Judge  Cradlebaugh's  Attempts  to  enforce  the  Law  —  Investi- 
gation of  the  Mountain  Meadows  Massacre  —  Governor  Cumming's  Objections 
to  the  Use  of  Troops  to  assist  the  Court  —  A  Washington  Decision  in  Favor 
of  Young's  Authority— The  Story  of  a  Counterfeit  Plate  — Five  Thousand 
Men  under  Arms  to  protect  Young  from  Arrest  —  Sudden  Departure  of  Cum- 
ming —  Governor  Dawson's  Brief  Term  —  His  Shocking  Treatment  at  Mormon 
Hands— Governor  Harding's  Administration  —The  Morrisite  Tragedy  .         .     535 


CONTENTS  xxiii 


CHAPTER  XVIII 

PAGE 

Attitude  of  the  Mormons  during  the  Southern  Rebellion:  Press  and 
Pulpit  Utterances  —  Arrival  of  Colonel  Connor's  Force  —  His  March  through 
Salt  Lake  City  to  Camp  Douglas  —  Governor  Harding's  Plain  Message  to  the 
Legislature  —  Mormon  Retaliation  —  The  Governor  and  Two  Judges  re- 
quested to  leave  the  Territory  —  Their  Spirited  Replies  —  How  Young  escaped 
Arrest  by  Colonel  Connor's  Force  —  Another  Yielding  to  Mormon  Power  at 
Washington 543 

CHAPTER   XIX 

Eastern  Visitors  to  Salt  Lake  City:  Schuyler  Colfax's  Interviews  with 
Young  —  Samuel  Bowles's  Praise  of  the  Mormons  and  his  Speedy  Correction 
of  his  Views  —  Repudiation  of  Colfax's  Plan  to  drop  Polygamy  —  Two  more 
Utah  Murders  —  Colfax's  Second  Visit 552 

CHAPTER   XX 

Gentile  Irruption  and  Mormon  Schism  :  Young's  Jealousy  of  Gentile  Mer- 
chants —  Organization  of  the  Zion  Cooperative  Mercantile  Institution  — 
Inception  of  the  "New  Movement"  —  Its  Leaders  and  Objects  —  The  Peep 
0'  Day  and  the  Utah  Magazine  —  Articles  that  aroused  Young's  Hostility  — 
Visit  of  the  Prophet's  Sons  to  Salt  Lake  City  —  Trial  and  Excommunication 
of  Godbe  and  Harrison  —  Results  of  the  "  New  Movement  "    ....     557 

CHAPTER   XXI 

The  Last  Years  of  Brigham  Young:  New  Governors — Shaffer's  Rebuke  to 
the  Nauvoo  Legion — Conflict  with  the  New  Judges  —  Brigham  Young  and 
Others  indicted  —  Young's  Temporary  Imprisonment  —  A  Supreme  Court 
Decision  in  Favor  of  the  Mormon  Marshal  and  Attorney  —  Outside  Influ- 
ences affecting  Utah  Affairs  —  Grant's  Special  Message  to  Congress  —  Failure 
of  the  Frelinghuysen  Bill  in  the  House  —  Signing  of  the  Poland  Bill  —  Ann 
Eliza  Young's  Suit  for  Divorce  —  The  Later  Governors 567 

CHAPTER   XXII 

Brigham  Young's  Death:  His  Character  —  Explanation  of  his  Dictatorial  Power 
—  Exaggerated  Views  of  his  Executive  Ability  —  Overestimations  by  Contem- 
poraries —  Young's  Wealth  and  how  he  acquired  it  —  His  Revenue  from 
Divorces  —  Unrestrained  Control  of  the  Church  Property  —  His  Will  —  Suit 
against  his  Executors  —  List  of  his  Wives  —  His  Houses  in  Salt  Lake  City       .     574 

CHAPTER  XXIII 

Social  Aspects  of  Polygamy  :  Varied  Provisions  for  Plural  Wives  —  Home 
Accommodations  of  the  Leaders  —  Horace  Greeley's  Observation  about 
Woman's  Place  in  Utah  —  Means  of  overcoming  Female  Jealousy  —  Young 


xxiv  CONTENTS 

PAGE 

and  Grant  on  the  Unhappiness  of  Mormon  Wives  —  Acceptance  of  Fanatical 
Teachings  by  Women  —  Kimball  on  a  Fair  Division  of  the  Converts  —  Church 
Influence  in  Behalf  of  Plural  Marriages — A  Prussian  Convert's  Dilemma  — 
President  Cleveland  on  the  Evils  of  Polygamy 582 


CHAPTER   XXIV 

The  Fight  against  Polygamy  :  First  Measures  introduced  in  Congress  —  The 
Act  of  1862— The  Cullom  Bill  of  1869— Its  Failure  in  the  Senate  — The 
United  States  Supreme  Court  Decision  regarding  Polygamy  —  Conviction  of 
John  Miles — Appeal  of  Women  of  Salt  Lake  City  to  Mrs.  Hayes  and  the 
Women  of  the  United  States  —  President  Hayes's  Drastic  Recommendation 
to  Congress  —  Recommendations  of  Presidents  Garfield  and  Arthur  —  Passage 
of  the  Edmunds  Bill  —  Its  Provisions  —  The  Edmunds-Tucker  Amendment  — 
Appointment  of  the  Utah  Commission  —  Determined  Opposition  of  the  Mor- 
mon Church  —  Placing  their  Flags  at  Half  Mast  —  Convictions  under  the 
New  Law  —  Leaders  in  Hiding  or  in  Exile  —  Mormon  Honors  for  those  who 
took  their  Punishment  —  Congress  asked  to  disfranchise  All  Polygamists  — 
The  Mormon  Church  brought  to  Bay  —  Woodruffs  Famous  Proclamation  — 
How  it  was  explained  to  the  Church  —  The  Roberts  Case  and  the  Vetoed  Act 
of  1901  —  How  Statehood  came 590 


CHAPTER   XXV 

The  Mormonism  of  To-day  :  Future  Place  of  the  Church  in  American  History 
—  Main  Points  of  the  Mormon  Political  Policy  —  Unbroken  Power  of  the 
Priesthood  —  Fidelity  of  the  Younger  Members  —  Extension  of  the  Member- 
ship over  Adjoining  States  —  Mission  Work  at  Home  and  Abroad  —  Decreased 
Foreign  Membership  —  Effect  of  False  Promises  to  Converts  —  The  Settle- 
ments in  Canada  and  Mexico  —  Polygamy  still  a  Living  Doctrine  —  Reasons 
for  its  Hold  on  the  Church  —  Its  Appeal  to  the  Female  Members  —  Impor- 
tance of  a  Federal  Constitutional  Amendment  forbidding  Polygamous  Mar- 
riages—  Scope  of  the  Mormon  Political  Ambition    ......     609 

Index 619 


LIST   OF    ILLUSTRATIONS 

FACING  PAGE 

Alleged  Characters  from  the  Golden  Plates 40 

Facsimiles  of  Three  of  the  Kinderhook  Plates 86 

Facsimile  of  Title-page  of  First  Edition  of  Mormon  Bible      ...  90 

Diagram  of  the  Kingdom  of  God 116 

Facsimile  from  the  Book  of  Abraham 140 

Facsimile  of  Altered  Kirtland  Bank-note 148 


THE  STORY  OF  THE  MORMONS 


BOOK    I 

THE  MORMON  ORIGIN 

CHAPTER    I 
FACILITY   OF   HUMAN    BELIEF 

Summing  up  his  observations  of  the  Mormons  as  he  found 
them  in  Utah  while  secretary  of  the  territory,  five  years  after 
their  removal  to  the  Great  Salt  Lake  valley,  B.  G.  Ferris  wrote, 
"  The  real  miracle  [of  their  success]  consists  in  so  large  a  body  of 
men  and  women,  in  a  civilized  land,  and  in  the  nineteenth  cen- 
tury, being  brought  under,  governed,  and  controlled  by  such  gross 
religious  imposture."  This  statement  presents,  in  concise  form, 
the  general  view  of  the  surprising  features  of  the  success  of  the 
Mormon  leaders,  in  forming,  augmenting,  and  keeping  together 
their  flock ;  but  it  is  a  mistaken  view.  To  accept  it  would  be  to 
concede  that,  in  a  highly  civilized  nation  like  ours,  and  in  so  late 
a  century,  the  acceptance  of  religious  beliefs  which,  to  the  non- 
believers,  seem  gross  superstitions,  is  so  unusual  that  it  may  be 
classed  with  the  miraculous.     Investigation  easily  disproves  this. 

It  is  true  that  the  effrontery  which  has  characterized  Mormon- 
ism  from  the  start  has  been  most  daring.  Its  founder  a  lad  of  low 
birth,  very  limited  education,  and  uncertain  morals ;  its  beginnings 
so  near  burlesque  that  they  drew  down  upon  its  originators  the 
scoff  of  their  neighbors,  —  the  organization  increased  its  mem- 
bership as  it  was  driven  from  one  state  to  another,  building  up 
at  last  in  an  untried  wilderness  a  population  that  has  steadily 
augmented  its  wealth  and  numbers ;  doggedly  defending  its  right 
to  practise  its  peculiar  beliefs  and  obey  only  the  officers  of  the 
church,  even  when  its  course  in  this  respect  has  brought  it  in  con- 

B  I 


2  THE    STORY   OF   THE    MORMONS 

flict  with  the  government  of  the  United  States.  Professing  only 
a  desire  to  be  let  alone,  it  promulgated  in  polygamy  a  doctrine 
that  was  in  conflict  with  the  moral  sentiment  of  the  Christian 
world,  making  its  practice  not  only  a  privilege,  but  a  part  of  the 
religious  duty  of  its  members.  When,  in  recent  years,  Congress 
legislated  against  this  practice,  the  church  fought  for  its  peculiar 
institution  to  the  last,  its  leading  members  accepting  exile  and 
imprisonment ;  and  only  the  certainty  of  continued  exclusion  from 
the  rights  of  citizenship,  and  the  hopelessness  of  securing  the  long- 
desired  prize  of  statehood  for  Utah,  finally  induced  the  church  to 
bow  to  the  inevitable,  and  to  announce  a  form  of  release  for  its 
members  from  the  duty  of  marrying  more  wives  than  one.  Aside 
from  this  concession,  the  Mormon  church  is  to-day  as  autocratic  in 
its  hold  on  its  members,  as  aggressive  in  its  proselyting,  and  as 
earnest  in  maintaining  its  individual  religious  and  political  power, 
as  it  has  been  in  any  previous  time  in  its  history. 

In  its  material  aspects  we  must  concede  to  the  Mormon  church 
organization  a  remarkable  success ;  to  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  a  leader- 
ship which  would  brook  no  rival;  to  Brigham  Young  the  main- 
tenance of  an  autocratic  authority  which  enabled  him  to  hold 
together  and  enlarge  his  church  far  beyond  the  limits  that  would 
have  been  deemed  possible  when  they  set  out  across  the  plains 
with  all  their  possessions  in  their  wagons.  But  it  is  no  more 
surprising  that  the  Mormons  succeeded  in  establishing  their  church 
in  the  United  States  than  it  would  have  been  if  they  had  been 
equally  successful  in  South  America ;  no  more  surprising  that 
this  success  should  have  been  won  in  the  nineteenth  century  than 
it  would  have  been  to  record  it  in  the  twelfth. 

In  studying  questions  of  this  kind,  we  are,  in  the  first  place, 
entirely  too  apt  to  ignore  the  fact  that  man,  while  comparatively  a 
"  superior  being,"  is  in  simple  fact  one  species  of  the  animals  that 
are  found  upon  the  earth;  and  that,  as  a  species,  he  has  traits 
which  distinguish  him  characteristically  just  as  certain  well-known 
traits  characterize  those  animals  that  we  designate  as  "lower." 
If  a  traveller  from  the  Sun  should  print  his  observations  of  the 
inhabitants  of  the  different  planets,  he  would  have  to  say  of  those 
of  the  Earth  something  like  this :  "  One  of  Man's  leading  traits  is 
what  is  known  as  belief.  He  is  a  credulous  creature,  and  is 
especially    susceptible   to  appeals   to  his  credulity  in   regard   to 


FACILITY   OF   HUMAN   BELIEF  3 

matters  affecting  his  existence  after  death."  Whatever  explana- 
tion we  may  accept  of  the  origin  of  the  conception  by  this  animal 
of  his  soul-existence,  and  of  the  evolution  of  shadowy  beliefs  into 
religious  systems,  we  must  concede  that  Man  is  possessed  of  a 
tendency  to  worship  something,  —  a  recognition,  at  least,  of  a 
higher  power  with  which  it  behooves  him  to  be  on  friendly  terms, 
—  and  so  long  as  the  absolute  correctness  of  any  one  belief  or 
doctrine  cannot  be  actually  proved  to  him,  he  is  constantly  ready 
to  inquire  into,  and  perhaps  give  credence  to,  new  doctrines  that 
are  presented  for  his  consideration.  The  acceptance  by  Man  of 
novelties  in  the  way  of  religions  is  a  characteristic  that  has  marked 
his  species  ever  since  its  record  has  been  preserved.  According 
to  Max  M tiller,  "every  religion  began  simply  as  a  matter  of 
reason,  and  from  this  drifted  into  a  superstition  "  ;  that  is,  into 
what  non-believers  in  the  new  doctrine  characterize  as  a  supersti- 
tion. Whenever  one  of  these  driftings  has  found  a  lodgement, 
there  has  been  planted  a  new  sect.  There  has  never  been  a  year 
in  the  Christian  era  when  there  have  not  been  believers  ready  to 
accept  any  doctrine  offered  to  them  in  the  name  of  religion.  As 
Shakespeare  expresses  it,  in  the  words  of  Bassanio :  — 

"In  religion, 
What  damned  error  but  some  sober  brow 
Will  bless  it,  and  approve  it  with  a  text. 
Hiding  the  grossness  with  fair  ornament  ? " 

In  glancing  at  the  cause  of  this  unchanged  susceptibility  to  reli- 
gious credulity  —  unchanged  while  the  world  has  been  making  such 
strides  in  the  acquisition  of  exact  information  —  we  may  find  a 
summing  up  of  the  situation  in  Macaulay's  blunt  declaration  that 
"  natural  theology  is  not  a  progressive  science ;  a  Christian  of  the 
fifth  century  with  a  Bible  is  on  a  par  with  a  Christian  of  the 
nineteenth  century  with  a  Bible."  The  "orthodox"  believer  in 
that  Bible  can  only  seek  a  better  understanding  of  it  by  studying 
it  himself  and  accepting  the  deductions  of  other  students.  Nothing, 
as  the  centuries  have  passed,  has  been  added  to  his  definite  knowl- 
edge of  his  God  or  his  own  future  existence.  When,  therefore, 
some  one,  like  a  Swedenborg  or  a  Joseph  Smith,  appears  with  an 
announcement  of  an  addition  to  the  information  on  this  subject, 
obtained  by  direct  revelation  from  on  high,  he  supplies  one  of  the 
greatest  desiderata  that  man  is  conscious  of,  and  we  ought,  per- 


4  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

haps,  to  wonder  that  his  followers  are,  not  so  numerous,  but  so 
few.  Progress  in  medical  science  would  no  longer  permit  any 
body  like  the  College  of  the  Physicians  of  London  to  recognize  cu- 
rative value  in  the  skull  of  a  person  who  had  met  with  a  violent 
death,  as  it  did  in  the  seventeenth  century ;  but  the  physician  of 
the  seventeenth  century  with  a  pharmacopoeia  was  not  "  on  a  par 
with  "  a  physician  of  the  nineteenth  century  with  a  pharmacopoeia. 

Nor  has  man  changed  in  his  mental  susceptibilities  as  the  cen- 
turies have  advanced.  It  is  a  failure  to  recognize  this  fact  which 
leads  observers  like  Ferris  to  find  it  so  marvellous  that  a  belief 
like  Mormonism  should  succeed  in  the  nineteenth  century. 
Draper's  studies  of  man's  intellectual  development  led  him  to  de- 
clare that  "  man  has  ever  been  the  same  in  his  modes  of  thought 
and  motives  of  action,"  and  to  assert  his  purpose  to  "judge  past  oc- 
currences in  the  same  way  as  those  of  our  own  time."  *  So  Macau- 
lay  refused  to  accept  the  doctrine  that  "  the  world  is  constantly 
becoming  more  and  more  enlightened,"  asserting  that  "  the  human 
mind,  instead  of  marching,  merely  marks  time."  Nothing  offers 
stronger  confirmation  of  the  correctness  of  these  views  than  the 
history  of  religious  beliefs,  and  the  teachings  connected  therewith 
since  the  death  of  Christ. 

The  chain  of  these  beliefs  and  teachings  —  including  in  the  list 
only  those  which  offer  the  boldest  challenge  to  a  sane  man's  cre- 
dulity —  is  uninterrupted  down  to  our  own  day.  A  few  of  them 
may  be  mentioned  by  way  of  illustration.  In  one  century  we  find 
Spanish  priests  demanding  the  suppression  of  the  opera  on  the 
ground  that  this  form  of  entertainment  caused  a  drought,  and  a 
Pope  issuing  a  bull  against  men  and  women  having  sexual  inter- 
course with  fiends.  In  another,  we  find  an  English  tailor,  unsuc- 
cessfully, allotting  endless  torments  to  all  who  would  not  accept  his 
declaration  that  God  was  only  six  feet  in  height,  at  the  same  time 
that  George  Fox,  who  was  successful  in  establishing  the  Quaker 
sect,  denounced,  as  unchristian  adoration  of  Janus  and  Woden,  any 
mention  of  a  month  as  January  or  a  day  as  Wednesday.  Luther, 
the  Protestant  pioneer,  believed  that  he  had  personal  conferences 
with  the  devil ;  Wesley,  the  founder  of  Methodism,  declared  that 
"  the  giving  up  of  [belief]  in  witchcraft  is,  in  effect,  giving  up  the 
Bible."     Education  and  mental  training  have  had  no  influence  in 

1  "  Intellectual  Development  of  Europe,"  Vol.  II,  Chap.  3. 


FACILITY   OF   HUMAN   BELIEF  5 

shaping  the  declarations  of  the  leaders  of  new  religious  sects.1  The 
learned  scientist,  Swedenborg,  told  of  seeing  the  Virgin  Mary 
dressed  in  blue  satin,  and  of  spirits  wearing  hats,  just  as  confidently 
as  the  ignorant  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  described  his  angel  as  "  a  tall, 
slim,  well-built,  handsome  man,  with  a  bright  pillar  upon  his  head." 
The  readiness  with  which  even  believers  so  strictly  taught  as 
are  the  Jews  can  be  led  astray  by  the  announcement  of  a  new 
teacher  divinely  inspired,  is  illustrated  in  the  stories  of  their  many 
false  Messiahs.  One  illustration  of  this  —  from  the  pen  of  Zang- 
will  —  may  be  given  :  — 

"  From  all  the  lands  of  the  Exile,  crowds  of  the  devout  came  to  do  him  hom- 
age and  tender  allegiance  —  Turkish  Jews  with  red  fez  or  saffron-yellow  turban  ; 
Jerusalem  Jews  in  striped  cotton  gowns  and  soft  felt  hats  ;  Polish  Jews  with  fox- 
skin  caps  and  long  caftans  ;  sallow  German  Jews,  gigantic  Russian  Jews,  high- 
bred Spanish  Jews  ;  and  with  them  often  their  wives  and  daughters  —  Jerusalem 
Jewesses  with  blue  shirts  and  head-veils,  Egyptian  Jewesses  with  sweeping  robes 
and  black  head-shawls,  Jewesses  from  Ashdod  and  Gaza,  with  white  visors  fringed 
with  gold  coins ;  Polish  Jewesses  with  glossy  wigs ;  Syrian  Jewesses  with  eye- 
lashes black  as  though  lined  with  kohl ;  fat  Jewesses  from  Tunis,  with  clinging 
breeches  interwoven  with  gold  and  silver." 

This  homage  to  a  man  who  turned  Turk,  and  became  a  door- 
keeper of  the  Sultan,  to  save  himself  from  torture  and  death ! 

Savagery  and  civilization  meet  on  this  plane  of  religious  cre- 
dulity. The  Indians  of  Canada  believed  not  more  implicitly  in  the 
demons  who  howled  all  over  the  Isles  of  Demons,  than  did  the 
early  French  sailors  and  the  priests  whose  protection  the  latter 
asked.  The  Jesuit  priests  of  the  seventeenth  century  accepted, 
and  impressed  upon  their  white  followers  in  New  France,  belief  in 
miracles  which  made  a  greater  demand  on  credulity  than  did  any 
of  the  exactions  of  the  Indian  medicine  man.  That  the  head  of  a 
white  man,  which  the  Iroquois  carried  to  their  village,  spoke  to 
them  and  scolded  them  for  their  perfidy,  "  found  believers  among 
the  most  intelligent  men  of  the  colony,"  just  as  did  the  story  of  the 
conversion  of  a  sick  Huguenot  immigrant,  with  whose  gruel  a 
Mother  secretly  mixed  a  little  of  the  powdered  bone  of  a  Jesuit 
martyr.2     And  French  Canada  is  to-day  as  "  orthodox  "  in  its  be- 

1  "The  splendid  gifts  which  make  a  seer  are  usually  found  among  those  whom 
society  calls  'common  or  unclean.'  These  brutish  beings  are  the  chosen  vessels  in 
whom  God  has  poured  the  elixirs  which  amaze  humanity.  Such  beings  have  furnished 
the  prophets,  the  St.  Peters,  the  hermits  of  history." — Balzac,  in  "Cousin  Pons." 

2  Parkman's  "  Old  Regime  in  Canada." 


6  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

lief  in  miracles  as  was  the  Canada  of  the  seventeenth  century. 
The  church  of  St.  Anne  de  Beaupre,  below  Quebec,  attracts  its 
thousands  annually,  and  is  piled  with  the  crutches  which  the  mi- 
raculously cured  have  cast  aside.  Masses  were  said  in  1899  in 
the  church  of  Notre  Dame  de  Bonsecours  at  Montreal,  at  the 
expense  of  a  pilots'  association,  to  ward  off  wrecks  in  the  treach- 
erous St.  Lawrence ;  and  in  the  near-by  provinces  there  were 
religious  processions  to  check  the  attacks  of  caterpillars  in  the 
orchards. 

Nor  need  we  go  to  Catholic  Quebec  for  modern  illustrations  of 
this  kind  of  faith.  "  Bareheaded  people  stood  out  upon  the  cor- 
ner in  East  113th  Street  yesterday  afternoon,"  said  a  New  York 
City  newspaper  of  December  18,  1898,  "because  they  were  unable 
to  get  into  the  church  of  Our  Lady  Queen  of  Angels,  where  a  relic 
of  St.  Anthony  of  Padua  was  exposed  for  veneration."  Describ- 
ing a  service  in  the  church  of  St.  Jean  Baptiste  in  East  77th  Street, 
New  York,  where  a  relic  alleged  to  be  a  piece  of  a  bone  of  the 
mother  of  the  Virgin  was  exposed,  a  newspaper  of  that  city,  on 
July  24th,  1901,  said:  "There  were  five  hundred  persons,  by  ac- 
tual count,  in  and  around  the  crypt  chapel  of  St.  Anne  when  after- 
noon service  stopped  the  rush  of  the  sick  and  crippled  at  4.30 
o'clock  yesterday.  There  were  many  more  at  the  8  o'clock  even- 
ing Mass.  What  did  these  people  seek  at  the  shrine  ?  Only  the 
favor  of  St.  Anne  and  a  kiss  and  touch  of  the  casket  that,  by 
church  authority,  contains  bone  of  her  body."  France  has  to-day 
its  Grotto  of  Lourdes,  Wales  its  St.  Winefride's  Well,  Mexico  its 
"  wonder-working  doll "  that  makes  the  sick  well  and  the  childless 
mothers,  and  Moscow  its  "wonder-working  picture  of  the  Mother 
of  God,"  before  which  the  Czar  prostrates  himself. 

Not  in  recent  years  has  the  appetite  for  some  novelty  on  which 
to  fasten  belief  been  more  manifest  in  the  United  States  than  it 
was  at  the  close  of  the  nineteenth  century.  Old  beliefs  found  new 
teachers,  and  promulgators  of  new  ideas  found  followers.  Instruc- 
tors in  Brahminism  attracted  considerable  attention.  A  "  Chapter 
of  the  College  of  Divine  Sciences  and  Realization "  instituted  a 
revival  of  Druid  sun-adoration  on  the  shores  of  Lake  Michigan. 
An  organization  has  been  formed  of  believers  in  the  One-Over-At- 
Acre,  a  Persian  who  claimed  to  be  the  forerunner  of  the  Millennium, 
and  in  whom,  as  Christ,  it  is  said  that  more  than  three  thousand  per- 


FACILITY   OF   HUMAN    BELIEF  7 

sons  in  this  country  believe.  We  have  among  us  also  Jaorelites, 
who  believe  in  the  near  date  of  the  end  of  the  world,  and  that  they 
must  make  their  ascent  to  heaven  from  a  mountain  in  Scotland. 
The  hold  which  the  form  of  belief  called  Christian  Science  has  ob- 
tained upon  people  of  education  and  culture  needs  only  be  referred 
to.  Along  with  this  have  come  the  "  divine  healers,"  gaining  pa- 
tients in  circles  where  it  would  be  thought  impossible  for  them  to 
obtain  even  consideration,  and  one  of  them  securing  a  clientage  in 
a  Western  city  which  has  enabled  him  to  establish  there  a  church 
of  his  own. 

In  fact,  instead  of  finding  in  enlightened  countries  like  the 
United  States  and  England  a  poor  field  for  the  dissemination  of 
new  beliefs,  the  whole  school  of  revealers  find  there  their  best 
opportunities.  Discussing  this  susceptibility,  Aliene  Gorren,  in 
her  "  Anglo-Saxons  and  Others,"  reaches  this  conclusion:  — 

"  Nowhere  are  so  many  persons  of  sound  intelligence  in  all  practical  affairs 
so  easily  led  to  follow  after  crazy  seers  and  seeresses  as  in  England  and  the 
United  States.  The  truth  is  that  the  mind  of  man  refuses  to  be  shut  out  abso- 
lutely from  the  world  of  the  higher  abstractions,  and  that,  if  it  may  not  make  its 
way  thither  under  proper  guidance,  it  will  set  off  even  at  the  tail  of  the  first 
ragged  street  procession  that  passes." 

The  "  real  miracle  "  in  Mormonism,  then,  —  the  wonderful  fea- 
ture of  its  success,  —  is  to  be  sought,  not  in  the  fact  that  it  has 
been  able  to  attract  believers  in  a  new  prophet,  and  to  find  them 
at  this  date  and  in  this  country,  but  in  its  success  in  establishing 
and  keeping  together  in  a  republic  like  ours  a  membership  who 
acknowledge  its  supreme  authority  in  politics  as  well  as  in  religion, 
and  who  form  a  distinct  organization  which  does  not  conceal  its 
purpose  to  rule  over  the  whole  nation.  Had  Mormonism  confined 
itself  to  its  religious  teachings,  and  been  preached  only  to  those 
who  sought  its  instruction,  instead  of  beating  up  the  world  for 
recruits  and  conveying  them  to  its  home,  the  Mormon  church 
would  probably  to-day  be  attracting  as  little  attention  as  do  the 
Harmonists  of  Pennsylvania. 


CHAPTER   II 

THE   SMITH   FAMILY 

Among  the  families  who  settled  in  Ontario  County,  New  York, 
in  1816,  was  that  of  one  Joseph  Smith.  It  consisted  of  himself, 
his  wife,  and  nine  children.  The  fourth  of  these  children,  Joseph 
Smith,  Jr.,  became  the  Mormon  prophet. 

The  Smiths  are  said  to  have  been  of  Scotch  ancestry.  It  was 
the  mother,  however,  who  exercised  the  larger  influence  on  her 
son's  life,  and  she  has  left  very  minute  details  of  her  own  and  her 
father's  family.1  Her  father,  Solomon.  Mack,  was  a  native  of 
Lyme,  Connecticut.  The  daughter  Lucy,  who  became  Mrs.  Joseph 
Smith,  Sr.,  was  born  in  Gilsum,  Cheshire  County,  New  Hampshire, 
on  July  8,  1776.  Mr.  Mack  was  remembered  as  a  feeble  old  man, 
who  rode  around  the  country  on  horseback,  using  a  woman's  sad- 
dle, and  selling  his  own  autobiography.  The  "tramp"  of  those 
early  days  often  offered  an  autobiography,  or  what  passed  for  one, 
and,  as  books  were  then  rare,  if  he  could  say  that  it  contained  an 
account  of  actual  adventures  in  the  recent  wars,  he  was  certain  to 
find  purchasers. 

One  of  the  few  copies  of  this  book  in  existence  lies  before  me. 
It  was  printed  at  the  author's  expense  about  the  year  18 10.  It 
is  wholly  without  interest  as  a  narrative,  telling  of  the  poverty  of 
his  parents,  how  he  was  bound,  when  four  years  old,  to  a  farmer 
who  gave  him  no  education  and  worked  him  like  a  slave ;  gives 
some  of  his  experiences  in  the  campaigns  against  the  French  and 
Indians  in  northern  New  York  and  in  the  war  of  the  Revolution, 
when  he  was  in  turn  teamster,  sutler,  and  privateer  ;  describes  with 
minute  detail  many  ordinary  illnesses  and  accidents  that  befell 
him  ;  and  closes  with  a  recital  of  his  religious  awakening,  which 
was  deferred  until  his  seventy-sixth  year,  while  he  was  suffering 

1  "Biographical  Sketches  of  Joseph  Smith  and  his  Progenitors  for  Many  Genera- 
tions," Lucy  Smith. 

8 


THE   SMITH    FAMILY  9 

with  rheumatism.  At  that  time  it  seemed  to  him  that  he  several 
times  "  saw  a  bright  light  in  a  dark  night,"  and  thought  he  heard 
a  voice  calling  to  him.  Twenty-two  of  the  forty-eight  duodecimo 
pages  that  the  book  contains  are  devoted  to  hymns  "  composed," 
the  title-page  says,  "  on  the  death  of  several  of  his  relatives,"  not 
all  by  himself.     One  of  these  may  be  quoted  entire  :  — 

"  My  friends,  I  am  on  the  ocean, 
So  sweetly  do  I  sail ; 
Jesus  is  my  portion, 
He's  given  me  a  pleasant  gale. 

"  The  bruises  sore, 
In  harbor  soon  I'll  be, 
And  see  my  redeemer  there 
That  died  for  you  and  me." 

Mrs.  Smith's  family  seem  to  have  had  a  natural  tendency  to 
belief  in  revelations.  Her  eldest  brother,  Jason,  became  a 
"Seeker";  the  "  Seekers  "  of  that  day  believed  that  the  devout 
of  their  times  could,  through  prayer  and  faith,  secure  the  "  gifts  " 
of  the  Gospel  which  were  granted  to  the  ancient  apostles.1  He 
was  one  of  the  early  believers  in  faith-cure,  and  was,  we  are  told, 
himself  cured  by  that  means  in  1835.  One  of  Lucy's  sisters  had 
a  miraculous  recovery  from  illness.  After  being  an  invalid  for 
two  years  she  was  "borne  away  to  the  world  of  spirits,"  where  she 
saw  the  Saviour  and  received  a  message  from  Him  for  her  earthly 
friends. 

Lucy  herself  came  very  exactly  under  the  description  given  by 
Ruth  McEnery  Stuart  of  one  of  her  negro  characters  :  "  Duke's 
mother  was  of  the  slighter  intelligences,  and  hence  much  given  to 
convictions.  Knowing  few  things,  she  '  believed  in '  a  great 
many."  Lucy  Smith  had  neither  education  nor  natural  intelli- 
gence that  would  interfere  with  such  "  beliefs  "  as  came  to  her 
from  family  tradition,  from  her  own  literal  interpretations  of  the 
Bible,  or  from  the  workings  of  her  imagination.  She  tells  us  that 
after  her  marriage,  when  very  ill,  she  made  a  covenant  with  God 
that  she  would  serve  him  if  her  recovery  was  granted ;  thereupon 
she  heard  a  voice  giving  her  assurance  that  her  prayer  would  be 
answered,  and  she  was  better  the  next  morning.      Later,  when 

1  A  sect  called  "Seekers,"  who  arose  in  1645,  taught,  like  the  Mormons,  that  the 
Scriptures  are  defective,  the  true  church  lost,  and  miracles  necessary  to  faith. 


10  THE  STORY  OF  THE  MORMONS 

anxious  for  the  safety  of  her  husband's  soul,  she  prayed  in  a  grove 
(most  of  the  early  Mormons'  prayers  were  made  in  the  woods), 
and  saw  a  vision  indicating  his  coming  conversion ;  later  still,  in 
Vermont,  a  daughter  was  restored  to  health  by  her  parent's 
prayers. 

According  to  Mrs.  Smith's  account  of  their  life  in  Vermont, 
they  were  married  on  January  24,  1796,  at  Tunbridge,  but  soon 
moved  to  Randolph,  where  Smith  was  engaged  in  "  merchandise," 
keeping  a  store.  Learning  of  the  demand  for  crystallized  ginseng 
in  China,  he  invested  money  in  that  product  and  made  a  ship- 
ment, but  it  proved  unprofitable,  and,  having  in  this  way  lost  most 
of  his  money,  they  moved  back  to  a  farm  at  Tunbridge.  Thence 
they  moved  to  Royalton,  and  in  a  few  months  to  Sharon,  where, 
on  December  23,  1805,  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  their  fourth  child,  was 
born. *  Again  they  moved  to  Tunbridge,  and  then  back  to  Royal- 
ton  (all  these  places  in  Vermont).  From  there  they  went  to 
Lebanon,  New  Hampshire,  thence  to  Norwich,  Vermont,  still 
"  farming  "  without  success,  until,  after  three  years  of  crop  failure, 
they  decided  to  move  to  New  York  State,  arriving  there  in  the 
summer  of  18 16. 

Less  prejudiced  testimony  gives  an  even  less  favorable  view 
than  this  of  the  elder  Smith's  business  career  in  Vermont.  Judge 
Daniel  Woodward,  of  the  county  court  of  Windsor,  Vermont,  near 
whose  father's  farm  the  Smiths  lived,  says  that  the  elder  Smith 
while  living  there  was  a  hunter  for  Captain  Kidd's  treasure,  and 
that  "  he  also  became  implicated  with  one  Jack  Downing  in  coun- 
terfeiting money,  but  turned  state's  evidence  and  escaped  the  pen- 
alty."2 He  had  in  earlier  life  been  a  Universalist,  but  afterward 
became  a  Methodist.  His  spiritual  welfare  gave  his  wife  much 
concern,  but  although  he  had  "  two  visions  "  while  living  in  Ver- 
mont, she  did  not  accept  his  change  of  heart.  She  admits,  how- 
ever, that  after  their  removal  to  New  York  her  husband  obeyed 
the  scriptural  injunction,  "  your  old  men  shall  dream  dreams,"  and 
she  mentions  several  of  these  dreams,  the  latest  in  18 19,  giving 
the  particulars  of  some  of  them.  One  sample  of  these  will  suffice : 
The  dreamer  found  himself  in  a  beautiful  garden,  with  wide  walks 
and  a  main  walk  running  through  the  centre.     "  On  each  side  of 

1  There  is  equally  good  authority  for  placing  the  house  in  which  Smith  was  born 
across  the  line  in  Royalton.  2  Historical  Magazine,  1870. 


X 


THE   SMITH    FAMILY  II 

this  was  a  richly  carved  seat,  and  on  each  seat  were  placed  six 
wooden  images,  each  of  which  was  the  size  of  a  very  large  man. 
When  I  came  to  the  first  image  on  the  right  side  it  arose,  bowed  to 
me  with  much  deference.  I  then  turned  to  the  one  which  sat  oppo- 
site to  me,  on  the  left  side,  and  it  arose  and  bowed  to  me  in  the  ■> 
same  manner  as  the  first.  I  continued  turning  first  to  the  right 
and  then  to  the  left  until  the  whole  twelve  had  made  the  obeisance, 
after  which  I  was  entirely  healed  [of  a  lameness  from  which  he 
then  was  suffering].  I  then  asked  my  guide  the  meaning  of  all 
this,  but  I  awoke  before  I  received  an  answer." 

A  similar  wakefulness  always  manifested  itself  at  the  critical 
moment  in  these  dreams.  What  the  world  lost  by  this  insomnia 
of  the  dreamer  the  world  will  never  know. 

The  Smiths'  first  residence  in  New  York  State  was  in  the 
village  of  Palmyra.  There  the  father  displayed  a  sign,  "  Cake  and 
Beer  Shop,"  selling  "gingerbread,  pies,  boiled  eggs,  root  beer,  and 
other  like  notions,"  and  he  and  his  sons  did  odd  jobs,  gardening, 
harvesting,  and  well-digging,  when  they  could  get  them.1 

They  were  very  poor,  and  Mrs.  Smith  added  to  their  income 
by  painting  oil-cloth  table  covers.  After  a  residence  of  three  years 
and  a  half  in  Palmyra,  the  family  took  possession  of  a  piece  of 
land  two  miles  south  of  that  place,  on  the  border  of  Manchester. 
They  had  no  title  to  it,  but  as  the  owners  were  non-resident  minors 
they  were  not  disturbed.  There  they  put  up  a  little  log  house, 
with  two  rooms  on  the  ground  floor  and  two  in  the  attic,  which 
sheltered  them  all.  Later,  the  elder  Smith  contracted  to  buy  the 
property  and  erected  a  farmhouse  on  it ;  but  he  never  completed 
his  title  to  it. 

While  classing  themselves  as  farmers,  the  Smiths  were  regarded 
by  their  neighbors  as  shiftless  and  untrustworthy.  They  sold  cord- 
wood,  vegetables,  brooms  of  their  own  manufacture,  and  maple 
sugar,  continuing  to  vend  cakes  in  the  village  when  any  special 
occasion  attracted  a  crowd.  It  may  be  remarked  here  that,  while 
Ontario  County,  New  York,  was  regarded  as  "  out  West "  by  sea- 
board and  New  England  people  in  1830,  its  population  was  then 
almost  as  large  as  it  is  to-day  (having  40,288  inhabitants  according 
to  the  census  of  1830  and  48,453  according  to  the  census  of  1890). 
The  father  and  several  of  the  boys  could  not  read,  and  a  good 

1  Tucker's  "Origin,  Rise,  and  Progress  of  Mormonism,"  p.  12. 


12  THE   STORY  OF   THE   MORMONS 

deal  of  the  time  of  the  younger  sons  was  spent  in  hunting,  fishing, 
and  lounging  around  the  village. 

The  son  Joseph  did  not  rise  above  the  social  standing  of  his 
brothers.  The  best  that  a  Mormon  biographer,  Orson  Pratt,  could 
say  of  him  as  a  youth  was  that  "  He  could  read  without  much  diffi- 
culty, and  write  a  very  imperfect  hand,  and  had  a  very  limited 
understanding  of  the  elementary  rules  of  arithmetic.  These  were 
his  highest  and  only  attainments,  while  the  rest  of  those  branches 
so  universally  taught  in  the  common  schools  throughout  the  United 
States  were  entirely  unknown  to  him."  2  He  was  "Joe  Smith  "  to 
every  one.  Among  the  younger  people  he  served  as  a  butt  for 
jokes,  and  we  are  told  that  the  boys  who  bought  the  cakes  that  he 
peddled  used  to  pay  him  in  pewter  two-shilling  pieces,  and  that 
when  he  called  at  the  Palmyra  Register  office  for  his  father's 
weekly  paper,  the  youngsters  in  the  press  room  thought  it  fun  to 
blacken  his  face  with  the  ink  balls. 

Here  are  two  pictures  of  the  young  man  drawn  by  persons  who 
saw  him  constantly  in  the  days  of  his  vagabondage.  The  first  is 
from  Mr.  Tucker's  book  :  — 

"At  this  period  in  the  life  and  career  of  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  or  i  Joe  Smith,1  as 
he  was  universally  named,  and  the  Smith  family,  they  were  popularly  regarded 
as  an  illiterate,  whiskey-drinking,  shiftless,  irreligious  race  of  people  —  the  first 
named,  the  chief  subject  of  this  biography,  being  unanimously  voted  the  laziest 
and  most  worthless  of  the  generation.  From  the  age  of  twelve  to  twenty  years 
he  is  distinctly  remembered  as  a  dull-eyed,  flaxen-haired,  prevaricating  boy  — 
noted  only  for  his  indolent  and  vagabondish  character,  and  his  habits  of  exag- 
geration and  untruthfulness.  Taciturnity  was  among  his  characteristic  idiosyn- 
crasies, and  he  seldom  spoke  to  any  one  outside  of  his  intimate  associates,  except 
when  first  addressed  by  another  ;  and  then,  by  reason  of  his  extravagancies  of 
statement,  his  word  was  received  with  the  least  confidence  by  those  who  knew 
him  best.  He  could  utter  the  most  palpable  exaggeration  or  marvellous  absurdity 
with  the  utmost  apparent  gravity.  He  nevertheless  evidenced  the  rapid  develop- 
ment of  a  thinking,  plodding,  evil-brewing  mental  composition  —  largely  given  to 
inventions  of  low  cunning,  schemes  of  mischief  and  deception,  and  false  and 
mysterious  pretensions.  In  his  moral  phrenology  the  professor  might  have 
marked  the  organ  of  secretiveness  as  very  large,  and  that  of  conscientiousness 
omitted.  He  was,  however,  proverbially  good  natured,  very  rarely,  if  ever,  indulg- 
ing in  any  combative  spirit  toward  any  one,  whatever  might  be  the  provocation, 
and  yet  was  never  known  to  laugh.  Albeit,  he  seemed  to  be  the  pride  of  his 
indulgent  father,  who  has  been  heard  to  boast  of  him  as  the  -genus  of  the  family,' 
quoting  his  own  expression."2 

1  "Remarkable  Visions."  2  "Origin,  Rise,  and  Progress  of  Mormonism,"  p.  16. 


THE   SMITH   FAMILY  1 3 

The  second  (drawn  a  little  latter)  is  by  Daniel  Hendrix,  a  resi- 
dent of  Palmyra,  New  York,  at  the  time  of  which  he  speaks,  and 
an  assistant  in  setting  the  type  and  reading  the  proof  of  the  Mormon 
Bible :  — 

"Every  one  knew  him  as  Joe  Smith.  He  had  lived  in  Palmyra  a  few  years 
previous  to  my  going  there  from  Rochester.  Joe  was  the  most  ragged,  lazy  fellow 
in  the  place,  and  that  is  saying  a  good  deal.  He  was  about  twenty-five  years  old. 
I  can  see  him  now  in  my  mind's  eye,  with  his  torn  and  patched  trousers  held  to 
his  form  by  a  pair  of  suspenders  made  out  of  sheeting,  with  his  calico  shirt  as 
dirty  and  black  as  the  earth,  and  his  uncombed  hair  sticking  through  the  holes  in 
his  old  battered  hat.  In  winter  I  used  to  pity  him,  for  his  shoes  were  so  old  and 
worn  out  that  he  must  have  suffered  in  the  snow  and  slush  ;  yet  Joe  had  a  jovial,  \t 
easy,  don't-care  way  about  him  that  made  him  a  lot  of  warm  friends.  He  was  a 
good  talker,  and  would  have  made  a  fine  stump  speaker  if  he  had  had  the  train- 
ing. He  was  known  among  the  young  men  I  associated  with  as  a  romancer  of 
the  first  water.  I  never  knew  so  ignorant  a  man  as  Joe  was  to  have  such  a  fertile 
imagination.  He  never  could  tell  a  common  occurrence  in  his  daily  life  without 
embellishing  the  story  with  his  imagination  ;  yet  I  remember  that  he  was  grieved 
one  day  when  old  Parson  Reed  told  Joe  that  he  was  going  to  hell  for  his  lying 
habits." 1 

To  this  testimony  may  be  added  the  following  declarations,  pub- 
lished in  1833,  the  year  in  which  a  mob  drove  the  Mormons  out  of 
Jackson  County,  Missouri.  The  first  was  signed  by  eleven  of  the 
most  prominent  citizens  of  Manchester,  New  York,  and  the  second 
by  sixty-two  residents  of  Palmyra  :  — 

"We,  the  undersigned,  being  personally  acquainted  with  the  family  of  Joseph 
Smith,  Sr.,  with  whom  the  Gold  Bible,  so  called,  originated,  state  :  That  they 
were  not  only  a  lazy,  indolent  set  of  men,  but  also  intemperate,  and  their  word 
was  not  to  be  depended  upon  ;  and  that  we  are  truly  glad  to  dispense  with  their 
society." 

"  We,  the  undersigned,  have  been  acquainted  with  the  Smith  family  for  a 
number  of  years,  while  they  resided  near  this  place,  and  we  have  no  hesitation  in 
saying  that  we  consider  them  destitute  of  that  moral  character  which  ought  to 
entitle  them  to  the  confidence  of  any  community.  They  were  particularly  famous 
for  visionary  projects  ;  spent  much  of  their  time  in  digging  for  money  which  they 
pretended  was  hid  in  the  earth,  and  to  this  day  large  excavations  may  be  seen 
in  the  earth,  not  far  from  their  residence,  where  they  used  to  spend  their  time 
in  digging  for  hidden  treasures.  Joseph  Smith,  Sr.,  and  his  son  Joseph  were,  in 
particular,  considered  entirely  destitute  of  moral  character,  and  addicted  to  vicious 
habits."2 

1  San  Jacinto,  California,  letter  of  February  2,  1897,  to  the  St.  Louis  Globe- 
Democrat. 

2  Howe's  "  Mormonism  Unveiled,"  p.  261. 


i 


14  THE   STORY   OF  THE   MORMONS 

Finally  may  be  quoted  the  following  affidavit  of  Parley  Chase: — 

"  Manchester,  New  York,  December  2,  1833.  I  was  acquainted  with  family  of 
Joseph  Smith,  Sr.,  both  before  and  since  they  became  Mormons,  and  feel  free  to  state 
that  not  one  of  the  male  members  of  the  Smith  family  were  entitled  to  any  credit 
whatsoever.  They  were  lazy,  intemperate,  and  worthless  men,  very  much  addicted 
to  lying.  In  this  they  frequently  boasted  their  skill.  Digging  for  money  was 
their  principal  employment.  In  regard  to  their  Gold  Bible  speculation,  they 
scarcely  ever  told  two  stories  alike.  The  Mormon  Bible  is  said  to  be  a  revelation 
from  God,  through  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  his  Prophet,  and  this  same  Joseph  Smith, 
Jr.,  to  my  knowledge,  bore  the  reputation  among  his  neighbors  of  being  a  liar.1'1 

The  preposterousness  of  the  claims  of  such  a  fellow  as  Smith 
to  prophetic  powers  and  divinely  revealed  information  were  so 
apparent  to  his  local  acquaintances  that  they  gave  them  little 
attention.  One  of  these  has  remarked  to  me  in  recent  years  that 
if  they  had  had  any  idea  of  the  acceptance  of  Joe's  professions  by 
a  permanent  church,  they  would  have  put  on  record  a  much  fuller 
description  of  him  and  his  family. 

1  Howe's  "  Mormonism  Unveiled,"  p.  248. 


CHAPTER   III 
HOW  JOSEPH   SMITH   BECAME   A   MONEY-DIGGER 

The  elder  Smith,  as  we  have  seen,  was  known  as  a  money- 
digger  while  a  resident  of  Vermont.  Of  course  that  subject 
was  a  matter  of  conversation  in  his  family,  and  his  sons  were 
of  a  character  to  share  in  his  belief  in  the  existence  of  hidden 
treasure.  The  territory  around  Palmyra  was  as  good  ground  for 
their  explorations  as  any  in  Vermont,  and  they  soon  let  their 
neighbors  know  of  a  possibility  of  riches  that  lay  within  their 
reach. 

The  father,  while  a  resident  of  Vermont,  also  claimed  ability 
to  locate  an  underground  stream  of  water  over  which  would  be  a // 
good  site  for  a  well,  by  means  of  a  forked  hazel  switch,1  and  in 
this  way  doubtless  increased  the  demand  for  his  services  as  a 
well-digger,  but  we  have  no  testimonials  to  his  success.  The  son 
Joseph,  while  still  a  young  lad,  professed  to  have  his  father's  gift 
in  this  respect,  and  he  soon  added  to  his  accomplishments  the 
power  to  locate  hidden  riches,  and  in  this  way  began  his  career 
as  a  money-digger,  which  was  so  intimately  connected  with  his 
professions  as  a  prophet. 

Writers  on  the  origin  of  the  Mormon  Bible,  and  the  gradual 
development  of  Smith  the  Prophet  from  Smith  the  village  loafer 
and  money-seeker,  have  left  their  readers  unsatisfied  on  many 
points.  Many  of  these  obscurities  will  be  removed  by  a  very 
careful  examination  of  Joseph's  occupations  and  declarations 
during  the  years  immediately  preceding  the  announcement  of 
the  revelation  and  delivery  to  him  of  the  golden  plates. 

1  The  so-called  "  divining  rod  "  has  received  a  good  deal  of  attention  from  persons 
engaged  in  psychical  research.  Vol.  XIII,  Part  II,  of  the  "  Proceedings  of  the  Society 
for  Psychical  Research  "  is  devoted  to  a  discussion  of  the  subject  by  Professor  W.  F. 
Barrett  of  the  Royal  College  of  Science  for  Ireland,  in  Dublin,  and  in  March,  1890,  a 
commission  was  appointed  in  France  to  study  the  matter. 

15 


1 6  THE    STORY    OF   THE   MORMONS 

The  deciding  event  in  Joe's  career  was  a  trip  to  Susquehanna 
County,  Pennsylvania,  when  he  was  a  lad.  It  can  be  shown  that 
it  was  there  that  he  obtained  an  idea  of  vision-seeing  nearly  ten 
years  before  the  date  he  gives  in  his  autobiography  as  that  of 
the  delivery  to  him  of  the  golden  plates  containing  the  Book  of 
Mormon,  and  it  was  there[  probably)  that,  in  some  way,  he  later 
formed  the  acquaintance  of  Sidney  Rigdon.  It  can  also  be 
shown  that  the  original  version  of  his  vision  differed  radically 
from  the  one  presented,  after  the  lapse  of  another  ten  years  spent 
under  Rigdon's  tutelage,  in  his  autobiography.  Each  of  these 
points  is  of  great  incidental  value  in  establishing  Rigdon's  connec- 
tion with  the  conception  of  a  new  Bible,  and  the  manner  of  its 
presentation  to  the  public.  Later  Mormon  authorities  have  shown 
a  dislike  to  concede  that  Joe  was  a  money-digger,  but  the  fact  is 
admitted  both  in  his  mother's  history  of  him  and  by  himself.  His 
own  statement  about  it  is  as  follows  :  — 

"In  the  month  of  October,  1825,  I  hired  with  an  old  gentleman  by  the  name 
of  Josiah  Stoal,  who  lived  in  Chenango  County,  State  of  New  York.  He  had 
heard  something  of  a  silver  mine  having  been  opened  by  the  Spaniards  in 
Harmony,  Susquehanna  County,  State  of  Pennsylvania,  and  had.  previous  to  my 
hiring  with  him,  been  digging  in  order,  if  possible,  to  discover  the  mine.  After 
I  went  to  live  with  him  he  took  me,  among  the  rest  of  his  hands,  to  dig  for  the 
silver  mine,  at  which  I  continued  to  work  for  nearly  a  month,  without  success  in 
our  undertaking,  and  finally  I  prevailed  with  the  old  gentleman  to  cease  digging 
for  it.  Hence  arose  the  very  prevalent  story  of  my  having  been  a  money- 
digger."1 

Mother  Smith's  account  says,  however,  that  Stoal  "  came  for 
Joseph  on  account  of  having  heard  that  he  possessed  certain  keys 
by  which  he  could  discern  things  invisible  to  the  natural  eye  " ; 
thus  showing  that  he  had  a  reputation  as  a  "  gazer  "  before  that 
date.  It  was  such  discrepancies  as  these  which  led  Brigham 
Young  to  endeavor  to  suppress  the  mother's  narrative. 

The  "gazing"  which  Joe  took  up  is  one  of  the  oldest  —  per- 
haps the  oldest — form  of  alleged  human  divination,  and  has  been 
called  "mirror-gazing,"  "crystal-gazing,"  " crystal  vision,"  and  the 
like.  Its  practice  dates  back  certainly  three  thousand  years, 
having  been  noted  in  all  ages,  and  among  nations  uncivilized  as 
well  as  civilized.     Some  students  of  the  subject  connect  with  such 

1  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XIV,  Supt.,  p.  6. 


HOW   JOSEPH    SMITH    BECAME   A   MONEY-DIGGER  \J 

divination  Joseph's  silver  cup  "  whereby  indeed  he  divineth" 
(Genesis  xliv.  5).  Others,  long  before  the  days  of  Smith  and 
Rigdon,  advanced  the  theory  that  the  Urim  and  Thummim  were 
clear  crystals  intended  for  "  gazing "  purposes.  One  writer 
remarks  of  the  practice,  "  yEschylus  refers  it  to  Prometheus, 
Cicero  to  the  Assyrians  and  Etruscans,  Zoroaster  to  Ahriman, 
Varro  to  the  Persian  Magi,  and  a  very  large  class  of  authors,  from 
the  Christian  Fathers  and  Schoolmen  downward,  to  the  devil."  l 
An  act  of  James  I  (1736),  against  witchcraft  in  England,  made  it  a 
crime  to  pretend  to  discover  property  "  by  any  occult  or  crafty 
science."  As  indicating  the  universal  knowledge  of  "gazing,"  it 
may  be  further  noted  that  Varro  mentions  its  practice  among  the 
Romans  and  Pausanias  among  the  Greeks.  It  was  known  to  the 
ancient  Peruvians.  It  is  practised  to-day  by  East  Indians,  Afri- 
cans (including  Egyptians),  Maoris,  Siberians,  by  Australian, 
Polynesian,  and  Zulu  savages,  by  many  of  the  tribes  of  American 
Indians,  and  by  persons  of  the  highest  culture  in  Europe  and 
America.2  Andrew  Lang's  collection  of  testimony  about  visions 
seen  in  crystals  by  English  women  in  1897  might  seem  convincing 
to  any  one  who  has  not  had  experience  in  weighing  testimony  in 
regard  to  spiritualistic  manifestations,  or  brought  this  testimony 
alongside  of  that  in  behalf  of  the  "  occult  phenomena"  of  Adept 
Brothers  presented  by  Sinnett.3 

"  Gazers"  usedifferent  methods.  Some  look  into  water  con- 
tained in ~a  vessel,  some  into  a  drop  of  blood,  some  into  ink,  some 
into  a  round  opaque  stone,  some  into  mirrors,  and  many  into  some 
form  of  crystal  or  a  glass  ball.  Indeed,  the  "gazer"  seems  to  be 
quite  independent  as  to  the  medium  of  his  sight-seeing,  so  long  as 
he  has  the  "  power."  This  "  power  "  is  put  also  to  a  great  variety 
of  uses.  Australian  savages  depend  on  it  to  foretell  the  outcome 
of  an  attack  on  their  enemies ;  Apaches  resort  to  it  to  discover  the 
whereabouts  of  things  lost  or  stolen ;  and  Malagasies,  Zulus,  and 
Siberians  "  to  see  what  will  happen."  Perhaps  its  most  general 
use  has  been  to  discover  lost  objects,  and  in  this  practice  the  seers 
have  very  often  been  children,  as  we  shall  see  was  the  case  in  the 
exhibition  which  gave  Joe  Smith  his  first  idea  on  the  subject.     In 

1  "  Recent  Experiments  in  Crystal  Vision,"  Vol.  V,  "  Proceedings  of  the  Society  for 
Psychical  Research." 

2  Lang's  "The  Making  of  Religion,"  Chap.  V.  3  "The  Occult  World." 

c 


18  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

the  experiments  cited  by  Lang,  the  seers  usually  saw  distant  per- 
sons or  scenes,  and  he  records  his  belief  that  "  experiments  have 
proved  beyond  doubt  that  a  fair  percentage  of  people,  sane  and 
healthy,  can  see  vivid  landscapes,  and  figures  of  persons  in  motion, 
in  glass  balls  and  other  vehicles." 

It  can  easily  be  imagined  how  interested  any  member  of  the 
Smith  family  would  have  been  in  an  exhibition  like  that  of  a 
"crystal-gazer,"  and  we  are  able  to  trace  very  consecutively  Joe's 
first  introduction  to  the  practice,  and  the  use  he  made  of  the  hint 
thus  given. 

Emily  C.  Blackman,  in  the  appendix  to  her  "  History  of  Susque- 
hanna County,  Pennsylvania"  (1873),  supplies  the  needed  important 
information  about  Joe's  visits  to  Pennsylvania  in  the  years  preced- 
ing the  announcement  of  his  Bible.  She  says  that  it  is  uncertain 
when  he  arrived  at  Harmony  (now  Oakland),  "  but  it  is  certain  he 
was  here  in  1825  and  later."  A  very  circumstantial  account  of 
Joe's  first  introduction  to  a  "  peep-stone  "  is  given  in  a  statement 
by  J.  B.  Buck  in  this  appendix.     He  says  :  — 

"Joe  Smith  was  here  lumbering  soon  after  my  marriage,  which  was  in  1818, 
some  years  before  he  took  to  '  peeping,1  and  before  diggings  were  commenced 
under  his  direction.  These  were  ideas  he  gained  later.  The  stone  which  he 
afterward  used  was  in  the  possession  of  Jack  Belcher  of  Gibson,  who  obtained  it 
while  at  Salina,  N.  Y.,  engaged  in  drawing  salt.  Belcher  bought  it  because  it  was 
said  to  be  a^^eeing-stone.1  I  have  often  seen  it.  It  was  a  green  stone,  with 
brown  irregular  spots  on  it.  It  was  a  little  longer  than  a  goose's  egg,  and  about 
the  same  thickness.  When  he  brought  it  home  and  covered  it  with  a  hat, 
Belchers  little  boy  was  one  of  the  first  to  look  into  the  hat,  and  as  he  did  so,  he 
said  he  saw  a  candle.  The  second  time  he  looked  in  he  exclaimed,  Tve  found 
my  hatchet1  (it  had  been  lost  two  years),  and  immediately  ran  for  it  to  the  spot 
shown  him  through  the  stone,  and  it  was  there.  The  boy  was  soon  beset  by 
neighbors  far  and  near  to  reveal  to  them  hidden  things,  and  he  succeeded  mar- 
vellously- Joe  Smith,  conceiving  the  idea  of  making  a  fortune  through  a  similar 
process  of  '  seeing,1  bought  the  stone  of  Belcher,  and  then  began  his  operations 
in  directing  where  hidden  treasures  could  be  found.  His  first  diggings  were  near 
Capt.  Buck's  sawmill,  at  Red  Rock  ;  but  because  the  followers  broke  the  rule  of 
silence,  'the  enchantment  removed  the  deposit.111 

One  of  many  stories  of  Joe's  treasure-digging,  current  in  that 
neighborhood,  Miss  Blackman  narrates.  Learning  from  a  strolling 
Indian  of  a  place  where  treasure  was  said  to  be  buried,  Joe  induced 
a  farmer  named  Harper  to  join  him  in  digging  for  it  and  to  spend 
a  considerable  sum  of  money  in  the  enterprise.     "  After  digging  a 


HOW   JOSEPH    SMITH   BECAME   A   MONEY-DIGGER  19 

great  hole,  that  is  still  to  be  seen,"  the  story  continues,  "  Harper 
got  discouraged,  and  was  about  abandoning  the  enterprise.  Joe 
now  declared  to  Harper  that  there  was  an  '  enchantment '  about 
the  place  that  was  removing  the  treasure  farther  off ;  that  Harper 
must  get  a  perfectly  white  dog  (some  said  a  black  one),  and  sprinkle 
his  blood  over  the  ground,  and  that  would  prevent  the  '  enchant- 
ment '  from  removing  the  treasure.  Search  was  made  all  over  the 
country,  but  no  perfectly  white  dog  could  be  found."  Then  Joe 
said  a  white  sheep  would  do  as  well ;  but  when  this  was  sacrificed 
and  failed,  he  said  "  The  Almighty  was  displeased  with  him  for 
attempting  to  palm  off  on  Him  a  white  sheep  for  a  white  dog." 
This  informant  describes  Joe  at  that  time  as  "an  imaginative  en- 
thusiast, constitutionally  opposed  to  work,  and  a  general  favorite 
with  the  ladies." 

In  confirmation  of  this,  R.  C.  Doud  asserted  that  "in  1822  he 
was  employed,  with  thirteen  others,  by  Oliver  Harper  to  dig  for 
gold  under  Joe's  direction  on  Joseph  McKune's  land,  and  that  Joe 
had  begun  operations  the  year  previous." 

F.  G.  Mather  obtained  substantially  the  same  particulars  of 
Joe's  digging  in  connection  with  Harper  from  the  widow  of  Joseph 
McKune  about  the  year  1879,  and  he  said  that  the  owner  of  the 
farm  at  that  time  "  for  a  number  of  years  had  been  engaged  in 
filling  the  holes  with  stone  to  protect  his  cattle,  but  the  boys  still 
use  the  northeast  hole  as  a  swimming  pond  in  the  summer."  1 

Confirmation  of  the  important  parts  of  these  statements  has 
been  furnished  by  Joseph's  father.  When  the  reports  of  the  dis- 
covery of  a  new  Bible  first  gained  local  currency  (in  1830),  Fayette 
Lapham  decided  to  visit  the  Smith  family,  and  learn  what  he  could 
on  the  subject.  He  found  the  elder  Smith  very  communicative,  and 
he  wrote  out  a  report  of  his  conversation  with  him,  "  as  near  as  I  can 
repeat  his  words,"  he  says,  and  it  was  printed  in  the  Historical  Maga- 
zine for  May,  1870.  Father  Smith  made  no  concealment  of  his  belief 
in  witchcraft  and  other  things  supernatural,  as  well  as  in  the  exist- 
ence of  a  vast  amount  of  buried  treasure.  What  he  said  of  Joe's 
initiation  into  "crystal-gazing"  Mr.  Lapham  thus  records:  — 

"  His  son  Joseph,  whom  he  called  the  illiterate,2  when  he  was  about  fourteen 
years  of  age,  happened  to  be  where  a  man  was  looking  into  a  dark  stone,  and 

1  Lippincotfs  Magazine,  August,  18S0. 

2  Joe's  mother,  describing  Joe's  descriptions  to  the  family,  at  their  evening  fireside, 


20  THE   STORY    OF    THE   MORMONS 

telling  people  therefrom  where  to  dig  for  money  and  other  things.  Joseph  re- 
quested the  privilege  of  looking  into  the  stone,  which  he  did  by  putting  his  face 
into  the  hat  where  the  stone  was.  It  proved  to  be  not  the  right  stone  for  him  ; 
but  he  could  see  some  things,  and  among  them  he  saw  the  stone,  and  where  it 
was,  in  which  he  could  see  whatever  he  wished  to  see.  .  .  .  The  place  where  he 
saw  the  stone  was  not  far  from  their  house,  and  under  pretence  of  digging  a  well, 
they  found  water  and  the  stone  at  a  depth  of  twenty  or  twenty-two  feet.  After 
this,  Joseph  spent  about  two  years  looking  into  this  stone,  telling  fortunes,  where 
to  find  lost  things,  and  where  to  dig  for  money  and  other  hidden  treasures." 

If  further  confirmation  of  Joe's  early  knowledge  on  this  subject 
is  required,  we  may  cite  the  Rev.  John  A.  Clark,  D.D.,  who,  writ- 
ing in  1840  after  careful  local  research,  said  :  "  Long  before  the  idea 
of  a  golden  Bible  entered  their  [the  Smiths']  minds,  in  their  excur- 
sions for  money-digging,  ...  Joe  used  to  be  usually  their  guide, 
putting  into  a  hat  a  peculiar  stone  he  had,  through  which  he  looked 
to  decide  where  they  should  begin  to  dig."  2 

We  come  now  to  the  history  of  Joe's  own  "  peek-stone  "  (as  the 
family  generally  called  it),  that  which  his  father  says  he  discovered 
by  using  the  one  that  he  first  saw.  Willard  Chase,  of  Manches- 
ter, New  York,  near  Palmyra,  employed  Joe  and  his  brother  Alvin 
some  time  in  the  year  1822  (as  he  fixed  the  date  in  his  affidavit),2 
to  assist  him  in  digging  a  well.  "  After  digging  about  twenty  feet 
below  the  surface  of  the  earth,"  he  says,  "we  discovered  a  singu- 
larly appearing  stone  which  excited  my  curiosity.  I  brought  it  to 
the  top  of  the  well,  and  as  we  were  examining  it,  Joseph  put  it  into 
his  hat  and  then  his  face  into  the  top  of  the  hat.  It  has  been 
said  by  Smith  that  he  brought  the  stone  from  the  well,  but  this  is 
false.  There  was  no  one  in  the  well  but  myself.  The  next  morn- 
ing he  came  to  me  and  wished  to  obtain  the  stone,  alleging  that  he 
could  see  in  it ;  but  I  told  him  I  did  not  wish  to  part  with  it  on  ac- 
count of  its  being  a  curiosity,  but  would  lend  it.  After  obtaining 
the  stone,  he  began  to  publish  abroad  what  wonders  he  could  dis- 
cover by  looking  in  it,  and  made  so  much  disturbance  among  the 
credulous  part  of  the  community  that  I  ordered  the  stone  to  be  re- 
turned to  me  again.     He  had  it  in  his  possession  about  two  years." 

of  the  angel's  revelations  concerning  the  golden  plates,  says  (p.  84)  :  "  All  giving  the 
most  profound  attention  to  a  boy  eighteen  years  of  age,  who  had  never  read  the  Bible 
through  in  his  life ;  he  seemed  much  less  inclined  to  the  perusal  of  books  than  any  of  the 
rest  of  our  children." 

1  "  Gleanings  by  the  Way  "  (1842)^.225.     -  Howe's"  Mormonism  Unveiled,"  p.  240. 


HOW   JOSEPH    SMITH    BECAME   A   MONEY-DIGGER  21 

Joseph's  brother  Hyrum  borrowed  the  stone  some  time  in  1825, 
and  Mr.  Chase  was  unable  to  recover  it  afterward.  Tucker  de- 
scribes it  as  resembling  a  child's  foot  in  shape,  and  "  of  a  whitish, 
glassy  appearance,  though  opaque."  * 

The  Smiths  at  once  began  turning  Chase's  stone  to  their  own 
financial  account,  but  no  one  at  the  time  heard  that  it  was  giving 
them  any  information  about  revealed  religion.  For  pay  they  of- 
fered to  disclose  by  means  of  it  the  location  of  stolen  property  and 
of  buried  money.  There  seemed  to  be  no  limit  to  the  exaggeration 
of  their  professions.  They  would  point  out  the  precise  spot  be- 
neath which  lay  kegs,  barrels,  and  even  hogsheads  of  gold  and  sil- 
ver in  the  shape  of  coin,  bars,  images,  candlesticks,  etc.,  and  they 
even  asserted  that  all  the  hills  thereabout  were  the  work  of  human 
hands,  and  that  Joe,  by  using  his  "peek-stone,"  could  see  the  cav- 
erns beneath  them.2  Persons  can  always  be  found  to  give  at  least 
enough  credence  to  such  professions  to  desire  to  test  them.  It 
was  so  in  this  case.  Joe  not  only  secured  small  sums  on  the  prom- 
ise of  discovering  lost  articles,  but  he  raised  money  to  enable  him 
to  dig  for  larger  treasure  which  he  was  to  locate  by  means  of  the 
stone.  A  Palmyra  man,  for  instance,  paid  seventy-five  cents  to  be 
sent  by  him  on  a  fool's  errand  to  look  for  some  stolen  cloth. 

Certain  ceremonies  were  always  connected  with  these  money- 
digging  operations.  Midnight  was  the  favorite  hour,  a  full  moon 
was  helpful,  and  Good  Friday  was  the  best  date.  Joe  would  some- 
times stand  by,  directing  the  digging  with  a  wand.  The  utmost 
silence  was  necessary  to  success.  More  than  once,  when  the  dig- 
ging proved  a  failure,  Joe  explained  to  his  associates  that,  just  as 
the  deposit  was  about  to  be  reached,  some  one,  tempted  by  the 
devil,  spoke,  causing  the  wished-for  riches  to  disappear.  Such  an 
explanation  of  his  failures  was  by  no  means  original  with  Smith, 
the  serious  results  of  an  untimely  spoken  word  having  been  long 
associated  with  divers  magic  performances.  Joe  even  tried  on 
his  New  York  victims  the  Pennsylvania  device  of  requiring  the 
sacrifice  of  a  black  sheep  to  overcome  the  evil  spirit  that  guarded 
the  treasure.     William  Stafford  opportunely  owned  such  an  ani- 

1  Tucker  closes  his  chapter  about  this  stone  with  the  declaration  "  that  the  origin 
[of  Mormonism]  is  traceable  to  the  insignificant  little  stone  found  in  the  digging  of  Mr. 
Chase's  well  in  1819."  Tucker  was  evidently  ignorant  both  of  Joe's  previous  experience 
with  "crystal-gazing"  in  Pennsylvania  and  of  "  crystal-gazing  "  itself. 

2  William  Stafford's  affidavit,  Howe's  "  Mormonism  Unveiled,"  p.  237. 


22  THE  STORY  OF  THE  MORMONS 

mal,  and,  as  he  puts  it,  "to  gratify  my  curiosity,"  he  let  the  Smiths 
have  it.  But  some  new  "  mistake  in  the  process  "  again  resulted 
in  disappointment.  "This,  I  believe,"  remarks  the  contributor  of 
the  sheep,  "is  the  only  time  they  ever  made  money-digging  a  prof- 
itable business."  The  Smiths  ate  the  sheep. 
^  These  money-seeking  enterprises  were  continued  from  1820 
to  1827  (the  year  of  the  delivery  to  Smith  of  the  golden  plates). 
This  period  covers  the  years  in  which  Joe,  in  his  autobiography, 
confesses  that  he  "  displayed  the  corruption  of  human  nature.' 
He  explains  that  his  father's  family  were  poor,  and  that  they 
worked  where  they  could  find  employment  to  their  taste ;  "  some- 
times we  were  at  home  and  sometimes  abroad."  Some  of  these 
trips  took  them  to  Pennsylvania,  and  the  stories  of  Joe's  "  gazing  " 
accomplishment  may  have  reached  Sidney  Rigdon,  and  brought 
about  their  first  interview.  Susquehanna  County  was  more  thinly 
settled  than  the  region  around  Palmyra,  and  Joe  found  persons 
who  were  ready  to  credit  him  with  various  "gifts";  and  stories 
are  still  current  there  of  his  professed  ability  to  perform  miracles, 
to  pray  the  frost  away  from  a  cornfield,  and  the  like.1 

1  Lippincott 's  Magazine,  August,  1880. 


CHAPTER   IV 

FIRST  ANNOUNCEMENT   OF  THE    GOLDEN   BIBLE 

Just  when  Smith's  attention  was  originally  diverted  from  the 
discovery  of  buried  money  to  the  discovery  of  a  buried  Bible  en- 
graved on  gold  plates  remains  one  of  the  unexplained  points  in 
his  history.  He  was  so  much  of  a  romancer  that  his  own  state- 
ments at  the  time,  which  were  carefully  collected  by  Howe,  are 
contradictory.  The  description  given  of  the  buried  volume  itself 
was  changed  from  time  to  time,  giving  strength  in  this  way  to  the 
theory  that  Rigdon  was  attracted  to  Smith  by  the  rumor  of  his 
discovery,  and  afterward  gave  it  shape.  First  the  book  was 
announced  to  be  a  secular  history,  says  Dr.  Clark ;  then  a  gold 
Bible ;  then  golden  plates  engraved ;  and  later  metallic  plates, 
stereotyped  or  embossed  with  golden  letters.1  Daniel  Hendrix's 
recollection  was  that  for  the  first  few  months  Joe  did  not  claim 
for  the  plates  any  new  revelation  or  religious  significance,  but 
simply  that  they  were  a  historical  record  of  an  ancient  people. 
This  would  indicate  that  he  had  possession  of  the  "  Spaulding 
Manuscript "  before  it  received  any  theological  additions. 

The  account  of  the  revelation  of  the  book  by  an  angel,  which  is 
accepted  by  the  Mormons,  is  the  one  elaborated  in  Smith's  auto- 
biography, and  was  not  written  until  1838,  when  it  was  prepared 
under  the  direction  of  Rigdon  (or  by  him).  Before  examining 
this  later  version  of  the  story,  we  may  follow  a  little  farther  Joe's 
local  history  at  the  time. 

While  the  Smiths  were  conducting  their  operations  in  Pennsyl- 
vania, and  Joseph  was  "  displaying  the  corruption  of  human 
nature,"  they  boarded  for  a  time  in  the  family  of  Isaac  Hale,  who 
is  described  as  a  "distinguished  hunter,  a  zealous  member  of  the 
Methodist  church,"  and  (as  later  testified  to  by  two  judges  of  the 
Court   of   Common  Pleas   of    Susquehanna  County)  "a   man   of 

1  "  Gleanings  by  the  Wav,"  P.  229. 
23 


24  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

excellent  moral  character  and  of  undoubted  veracity."  l  Mr.  Hale 
had  three  daughters,  and  Joe  received  enough  encouragement  to 
his  addresses  to  Emma  to  induce  him  to  ask  her  father's  consent 
to  their  marriage.  This  consent  was  flatly  refused.  Mr.  Hale 
made  a  statement  in  1834,  covering  his  knowledge  of  Smith  and 
the  origin  of  the  Mormon  Bible.2  When  he  became  acquainted 
with  the  future  prophet,  in  1825,  Joe  was  employed  by  the  so- 
called  "money-diggers,"  using  his  "peek-stone."  Among  the 
reasons  which  Mr.  Hale  gave  for  refusing  consent  to  the  mar- 
riage was  that  Smith  was  a  stranger  and  followed  a  business 
which  he  could  not  approve. 

Joe  thereupon  induced  Emma  to  consent  to  an  elopement,  and 
they  were  married  on  January  18,  1827,  by  a  justice  of  the  peace, 
just  across  the  line  in  New  York  State.  Not  daring  to  return  to 
the  house  of  his  father-in-law,  Joe  took  his  wife  to  his  own  home, 
near  Palmyra,  New  York,  where  for  some  months  he  worked  again 
with  his  father. 

In  the  following  August  Joe  hired  a  neighbor  named  Peter 
Ingersol  to  go  with  him  to  Pennsylvania  to  bring  from  there  some 
household  effects  belonging  'to  Emma.  Of  this  trip  Ingersol  said, 
in  an  affidavit  made  in  1833  :  — 

"  When  we  arrived  at  Mr.  Hale's  in  Harmony,  Pa.,  from  which  place  he  had 
taken  his  wife,  a  scene  presented  itself  truly  affecting.  His  father-in-law  addressed 
Joseph  in  a  flood  of  tears  :  '  You  have  stolen  my  daughter  and  married  her.  I 
had  much  rather  have  followed  her  to  her  grave.  You  spend  your  time  in  dig- 
ging for  money  —  pretend  to  see  in  a  stone,  and  thus  try  to  deceive  people.'  Jo- 
seph wept  and  acknowledged  that  he  could  not  see  in  a  stone  now  nor  never  could, 
and  that  his  former  pretensions  in  that  respect  were  false.  He  then  promised  to 
give  up  his  old  habits  of  digging  for  money  and  looking  into  stones.  Mr.  Hale 
told  Joseph,  if  he  would  move  to  Pennsylvania  and  work  for  a  living,  he  would 
assist  him  in  getting  into  business.  Joseph  acceded  to  this  proposition.  I  then 
returned  with  Joseph  and  his  wife  to  Manchester.   .  .   . 

"Joseph  told  me  on  his  return  that  he  intended  to  keep  the  promise  which  he 
had  made  to  his  father-in-law ;  '  but,'  said  he,  '  it  will  he  hard  for  me,  for  they  [his 
family]  will  all  oppose,  as  they  want  me  to  look  in  the  stone  for  them  to  dig  money' ; 
and  in  fact  it  was  as  he  predicted.  They  urged  him  day  after  day  to  resume  his 
old  practice  of  looking  in  the  stone.  He  seemed  much  perplexed  as  to  the  course 
he  should  pursue.  In  this  dilemma  he  made  me  his  confidant,  and  told  me  what 
daily  transpired  in  the  family  of  Smiths. 

"  One  day  he  came  and  greeted  me  with  joyful  countenance.  Upon  asking 
the  cause  of  his  unusual  happiness,  he  replied  in  the  following  language :  '  As  I 

1  Howe's  "  Mormonism  Unveiled,"  p.  266.  2  Ibid.,  p,  262. 


FIRST   ANNOUNCEMENT   OF  THE  GOLDEN   BIBLE  2$ 

was  passing  yesterday  across  the  woods,  after  a  heavy  shower  of  rain,  I  found  in 
a  hollow  some  beautiful  white  sand  that  had  been  washed  up  by  the  water.  I 
took  off  my  frock  and  tied  up  several  quarts  of  it,  and  then  went  home.  On  en- 
tering the  house  I  found  the  family  at  the  table  eating  dinner.  They  were  all 
anxious  to  know  the  contents  of  my  frock.  At  that  moment  I  happened  to  think 
about  a  history  found  in  Canada,  called  a  Golden  Bible ; 1  so  I  very  gravely  told 
them  it  was  the  Golden  Bible.  To  my  surprise  they  were  credulous  enough  to 
believe  what  I  said.  Accordingly  I  told  them  I  had  received  a  commandment  to 
let  no  one  see  it,  for,  says  I,  no  man  can  see  it  with  the  natural  eye  and  live. 
However,  I  offered  to  take  out  the  book  and  show  it  to  them,  but  they  refused  to 
see  it  and  left  the  room.  Now,'  said  Joe,  '  I  have  got  the  d— d  fools  fixed  and 
will  carry  out  the  fun.1  Notwithstanding  he  told  me  he  had  no  such  book  and 
believed  there  never  was  such  book,  he  told  me  he  actually  went  to  Willard  Chase, 
to  get  him  to  make  a  chest  in  which  he  might  deposit  the  Golden  Bible.  But 
as  Chase  would  not  do  it,  he  made  the  box  himself  of  clapboards,  and  put  it  into 
a  pillow-case,  and  allowed  people  only  to  lift  it  and  feel  of  it  through  the  case."  2 

In  line  with  this  statement  of  Joe  to  Ingersol  is  a  statement 
which  somewhat  later  he  made  to  his  brother-in-law,  Alva  Hale, 

that  "  this  '  peeking  '  was  all  d d  nonsense  ;  that  he  intended 

to  quit  the  business  and  labor  for  a  livelihood."3 

Joe's  family  were  quite  ready  to  accept  his  statement  of  his 
discovery  of  golden  plates  for  more  reasons  than  one.  They  saw 
in  it,  in  the  first  place,  a  means  of  pecuniary  gain.  Abigail  Harris 
in  a  statement  (dated  "  nth  mo.,  28th,  1833")  of  a  talk  she  had 
with  Joe's  father  and  mother  at  Martin  Harris's  house,  said  :  — 

"  They  [the  Smiths]  said  the  plates  Joe  then  had  in  possession  were  but  an 
introduction  to  the  Gold  Bible  ;  that  all  of  them  upon  which  the  Bible  was  written 
were  so  heavy  that  it  would  take  four  stout  men  to  load  them  into  a  cart ;  that 
Joseph  had  also  discerned  by  looking  through  his  stone  the  vessel  in  which  the 
gold  was  melted  from  which  the  plates  were  made,  and  also  the  machine  with 
which  they  were  rolled  ;  he  also  discovered  in  the  bottom  of  the  vessel  three  balls 
of  gold,  each  as  large  as  his  fist.  The  old  lady  said  also  that  after  the  book  was 
translated,  the  plates  were  to  be  publicly  exhibited,  admission  25  cts."  * 

But  aside  from  this  pecuniary  view,  the  idea  of  a  new  Bible 
would  have  been  eagerly  accepted  by  a  woman  like  Mrs.  Smith, 
and  a  mere  intimation  by  Joe  of  such  a  discovery  would  have  given 
him,  in  her,  an  instigator  to  the  carrying  out  of  the  plot.  It  is  said 
that  she  had  predicted  that  she  was  to  be  the  mother  of  a  prophet. 
She  tells  us  that,  although,  in  Vermont,  she  was  a  diligent  church 

1  The  most  careful  inquiries  bring  no  information  that  any  such  story  was  ever 
current  in  Canada. 

2  Howe's  "  Mormonism  Unveiled,"  p.  234.        3  Ibid.,  p.  268.        *  Ibid.,  p.  253. 


26  THE   STORY   OF  THE   MORMONS 

attendant,  she  found  all  preachers  unsatisfactory,  and  that  she 
reached  the  conclusion  that  "  there  was  not  on  earth  the  religion 
she  sought."  Joe,  in  his  description  of  his  state  of  mind  just  before 
the  first  visit  of  the  angel  who  told  him  about  the  plates,  describes 
himself  as  distracted  by  the  "  war  and  tumult  of  opinions."  He 
doubtless  heard  this  subject  talked  of  by  his  mother  in  the  home 
circle,  but  none  of  his  acquaintances  at  the  time  had  any  reason  to 
think  that  he  was  laboring  under  such  mental  distress. 

The  second  person  in  the  neighborhood  whom  Joe  approached 
about  his  discovery  was  Willard  Chase,  in  whose  well  the  "  peek- 
stone  "  was  found.  Mr.  Chase  in  his  statement  (given  at  length 
by  Howe)  says  that  Joe  applied  to  him,  soon  after  the  above- 
quoted  conversation  with  Ingersol,  to  make  a  chest  in  which  to 
lock  up  his  Gold  Book,  offering  Chase  an  interest  in  it  as  compen- 
sation. He  told  Chase  that  the  discovery  of  the  book  was  due  to 
the  "  peek-stone,"  making  no  allusion  whatever  to  an  angel's  visit. 
He  and  Chase  could  not  come  to  terms,  and  Joe  accordingly  made 
a  box  in  which  what  he  asserted  were  the  plates  were  placed. 

Reports  of  Joe's  discovery  soon  gained  currency  in  the  neigh- 
borhood through  the  family's  account  of  it,  and  neighbors  who  had 
accompanied  them  on  the  money-seeking  expeditions  came  to  hear 
about  the  new  Bible,  and  to  request  permission  to  see  it.  Joe 
warded  off  these  requests  by  reiterating  that  no  man  but  him 
could  look  upon  it  and  live.  "  Conflicting  stories  were  afterward 
told,"  says  Tucker,  "in  regard  to  the  manner  of  keeping  the  book 
in  concealment  and  safety,  which  are  not  worth  repeating,  further 
than  to  mention  that  the  first  place  of  secretion  was  said  to  be 
under  a  heavy  hearthstone  in  the  Smith  family  mansion." 

Joe's  mother  and  Parley  P.  Pratt  tell  of  determined  efforts  of 
mobs  and  individuals  to  secure  possession  of  the  plates ;  but  their 
statements  cannot  be  taken  seriously,  and  are  contradicted  by 
Tucker  from  personal  knowledge.  Tucker  relates  that  two  local 
wags,  William  T.  Hussey  and  Azel  Vandruver,  intimate  acquaint- 
ances of  Smith,  on  asking  for  a  sight  of  the  book  and  hearing 
Joe's  usual  excuse,  declared  their  readiness  to  risk  their  lives  if 
that  were  the  price  of  the  privilege.  Smith  was  not  to  be  per- 
suaded, but,  the  story  continues,  "  they  were  permitted  to  go  to 
the  chest  with  its  owner,  and  see  where  the  thing  was,  and  observe 
its  shape  and  size,  concealed  under  a  piece  of  thick  canvas.     Smith, 


FIRST   ANNOUNCEMENT   OF   THE   GOLDEN    BIBLE  27 

with  his  accustomed  solemnity  of  demeanor,  positively  persisting 
in  his  refusal  to  uncover  it,  Hussey  became  impetuous,  and  (suiting 
his  action  to  his  word)  ejaculated,  '  Egad,  I'll  see  the  critter,  live 
or  die,'  and  stripping  off  the  canvas,  a  large  tile  brick  was  ex- 
hibited. But  Smith's  fertile  imagination  was  equal  to  the  emer- 
gency. He  claimed  that  his  friends  had  been  sold  by  a  trick  of 
his."1 

Mother  Smith,  in  her  book,  gives  an  account  of  proceedings  in 
court  brought  by  the  wife  of  Martin  Harris  to  protect  her  hus- 
band's property  from  Smith,  on  the  plea  that  Smith  was  deceiving 
him  in  alleging  the  existence  of  golden  plates  ;  and  she  relates  how 
one  witness  testified  that  Joe  told  him  that  "  the  box  which  he  had 
contained  nothing  but  sand,"  that  a  second  witness  swore  that 
Joe  told  him,  "  it  was  nothing  but  a  box  of  lead,"  and  that  a  third 
witness  declared  that  Joe  had  told  him  "  there  was  nothing  at  all 
in  the  box."  When  Joe  had  once  started  the  story  of  his  discov- 
ery, he  elaborated  it  in  his  usual  way.  "  I  distinctly  remember," 
says  Daniel  Hendrix,  "  his  sitting  on  some  boxes  in  the  store  and 
telling  a  knot  of  men,  who  did  not  believe  a  word  they  heard,  all 
about  his  vision  and  his  find.  But  Joe  went  into  such  minute  and 
careful  details  about  the  size,  weight,  and  beauty  of  the  carvings 
on  the  golden  tablets,  and  strange  characters  and  the  ancient  - 
adornments,  that  I  confess  he  made  some  of  the  smartest  men  in 
Palmyra  rub  their  eyes  in  wonder." 

1  "  Origin,  Rise,  and  Progress  of  Mormonism,"  p.  31. 


CHAPTER   V 

THE  DIFFERENT  ACCOUNTS  OF  THE  REVELATION  OF  THE 

BIBLE 

The  precise  date  when  Joe's  attention  was  first  called  to  the 
possibility  of  changing  the  story  about  his  alleged  golden  plates 
so  that  they  would  serve  as  the  basis  for  a  new  Bible  such  as  was 
finally  produced,  and  as  a  means  of  making  him  a  prophet,  cannot 
be  ascertained.  '  That  some  directing  mind  gave  the  final  shape  to 
the  scheme  is  shown  by  the  difference  between  the  first  accounts 
of  his  discovery  by  means  of  the  stone,  and  the  one  provided  in 
his  autobiography.  We  have  also  evidence  that  the  story  of  a 
direct  revelation  by  an  angel  came  some  time  later  than  the  ver- 
sion which  Joe  gave  first  to  his  acquaintances  in  Pennsylvania. 

James  T.  Cobb  of  Salt  Lake  City,  who  has  given  much  time 
to  investigating  matters  connected  with  early  Mormon  history,  re- 
ceived a  letter  under  date  of  April  23,  1879,  from  Hiel  and  Joseph 
Lewis,  sons  of  the  Rev.  Nathaniel  Lewis,  of  Harmony,  Pennsyl- 
vania, and  relatives  of  Joseph's  father-in-law,  in  which  they  gave 
the  story  of  the  finding  of  the  plates  as  told  in  their  hearing  by 
Joe  to  their  father,  when  he  was  translating  them.  This  state- 
ment, in  effect,  was  that  he  dreamed  of  an  iron  box  containing 
gold  plates  curiously  engraved,  which  he  must  translate  into  a 
book ;  that  twice  when  he  attempted  to  secure  the  plates  he  was 
knocked  down,  and  when  he  asked  why  he  could  not  have  them, 
"  he  saw  a  man  standing  over  the  spot  who,  to  him,  appeared  like 
a  Spaniard,  having  a  long  beard  down  over  his  breast,  with  his 
throat  cut  from  ear  to  ear  and  the  blood  streaming  down,  who 
told  him  that  he  could  not  get  it  alone."  (He  then  narrated  how 
he  got  the  box  in  company  with  Emma.)  "  In  all  this  narrative 
there  was  not  one  word  about  visions  of  God,  or  of  angels,  or 
heavenly  revelations ;  all  his  information  was  by  that  dream  and 
that  bleeding  ghost.     The  heavenly  visions  and  messages  of  angels.. 

28 


THE   REVELATION   OF   THE   BIBLE  29 

etc.,  contained  in  the  Mormon  books  were  afterthoughts,  revised 
to  order." 

In  direct  confirmation  of  this  we  have  the  following  account  of 
the  disclosure  of  the  buried  articles  as  given  by  Joe's  father  to 
Fayette  Lapham  when  the  Bible  was  first  published  :  — 

"Soon  after  joining  the  church  he  [Joseph]  had  a  very  singular  dream.  ...  A 
very  large,  tall  man  appeared  to  him  dressed  in  an  ancient  suit  of  clothes,  and  the 
clothes  were  bloody."  (This  man  told  him  of  a  buried  treasure,  and  gave  him  direc- 
tions by  means  of  which  he  could  find  the  place.  In  the  course  of  a  year  Smith  did 
find  it,  and,  visiting  it  by  night,  "  by  some  supernatural  power  "  was  enabled  to 
overturn  a  huge  boulder  under  which  was  a  square  block  of  masonry,  in  the 
centre  of  which  were  the  articles  as  described.)  "Taking  up  the  first  article, 
he  saw  others  below ;  laying  down  the  first,  he  endeavored  to  secure  the  others ; 
but,  before  he  could  get  hold  of  them,  the  one  he  had  taken  up  slid  back  to  the 
place  he  had  taken  it  from,  and,  to  his  great  surprise  and  terror,  the  rock  immedi- 
ately fell  back  to  its  former  place,  nearly  crushing  him  [Joseph]  in  its  descent." 
(While  trying  in  vain  to  raise  the  rock  again  with  levers,  Joseph  felt  something 
strike  him  on  the  breast,  a  third  blow  knocking  him  down ;  and  as  he  lay  on  the 
ground  he  saw  the  tall  man,  who  told  him  that  the  delivery  of  the  articles  would  be 
deferred  a  year  because  Joseph  had  not  strictly  followed  the  directions  given  to 
him.  The  heedless  Joseph  allowed  himself  to  forget  the  date  fixed  for  his  next 
visit,  and  when  he  went  to  the  place  again,  the  tall  man  appeared  and  told  him 
that,  because  of  his  lack  of  punctuality,  he  would  have  to  wait  still  another  year 
before  the  hidden  articles  would  be  confided  to  him.  "Come  in  one  year  from 
this  time,  and  bring  your  oldest  brother  with  you,"  said  the  guardian  of  the 
treasures,  "then  you  may  have  them."  Before  the  date  named  arrived,  the  elder 
brother  had  died,  and  Joseph  decided  that  his  wife  was  the  proper  person  to 
accompany  him.     Mr.  Lapham 's  report  proceeds  as  follows :) 

"  At  the  expiration  of  the  year  he  [Joseph]  procured  a  horse  and  light  wagon, 
with  a  chest  and  pillow-case,  and  proceeded  punctually  with  his  wife  to  find  the 
hidden  treasure.  When  they  had  gone  as  far  as  they  could  with  the  wagon, 
Joseph  took  the  pillow-case  and  started  for  the  rock.  Upon  passing  a  fence  a 
host  of  devils  began  to  screech  and  to  scream,  and  make  all  sorts  of  hideous 
yells,  for  the  purpose  of  terrifying  him  and  preventing  the  attainment  of  his 
object ;  but  Joseph  was  courageous  and  pursued  his  way  in  spite  of  them.  Arriv- 
ing at  the  stone,  he  again  lifted  it  with  the  aid  of  superhuman  power,  as  at  first, 
and  secured  the  first  or  uppermost  article,  this  time  putting  it  carefully  into  the 
pillow-case  before  laying  it  down.  He  now  attempted  to  secure  the  remainder ; 
but  just  then  the  same  old  man  appeared,  and  said  to  him  that  the  time  had  not 
yet  arrived  for  their  exhibition  to  the  world,  but  that  when  the  proper  time  came 
he  should  have  them  and  exhibit  them,  with  the  one  he  had  now  secured ;  until 
that  time  arrived,  no  one  must  be  allowed  to  touch  the  one  he  had  in  his  posses- 
sion ;  for  if  they  did,  they  would  be  knocked  down  by  some  superhuman  power. 
Joseph  ascertained  that  the  remaining  articles  were  a  gold  hilt  and  chain,  and  a 
gold  ball  with  two  pointers.     The  hilt  and  chain  had  once  been  part  of  a  sword 


30  THE  STORY  OF  THE  MORMONS 

of  unusual  size ;  but  the  blade  had  rusted  away  and  become  useless.  Joseph 
then  turned  the  rock  back,  took  the  article  in  the  pillow-case,  and  returned  to  the 
wagon.  The  devils,  with  more  hideous  yells  than  before,  followed  him  to  the 
fence ;  as  he  was  getting  over  the  fence,  one  of  the  devils  struck  him  a  blow 
on  the  side,  where  a  black  and  blue  spot  remained  three  or  four  days ;  but 
Joseph  persevered  and  brought  the  article  safely  home.  '  I  weighed  it,'  said 
Mr.  Smith,  Sr.,  'and  it  weighed  30  pounds.'  In  answer  to  our  question  as  to 
what  it  was  that  Joseph  had  thus  obtained,  he  said  it  consisted  of  a  set  of  gold 
plates,  about  six  inches  wide  and  nine  or  ten  inches  long.  They  were  in  the 
form  of  a  book."1 

We  may  now  contrast  these  early  accounts  of  the  disclosure 
with  the  version  given  in  the  Prophet's  autobiography  (written, 
be  it  remembered,  in  Nauvoo  in  1838),  the  one  accepted  by  all 
orthodox  Mormons.  One  of  its  striking  features  will  be  found 
to  be  the  transformation  of  the  Spaniard-with-his-throat-cut  into  a 
messenger  from  Heaven.2 

It  was,  according  to  this  later  account,  when  he  was  in  his 
fifteenth  year,  and  when  his  father's  family  were  "  proselyted  to 
the  Presbyterian  church,"  that  he  became  puzzled  by  the  divergent 
opinions  he  heard  from  different  pulpits.  One  day,  while  reading 
the  epistle  of  James  (not  a  common  habit  of  his,  as  his  mother 
would  testify),  Joseph  was  struck  by  the  words,  "If  any  of  you 
lack  wisdom,  let  him  ask  of  God."  Reflecting  on  this  injunction, 
he  retired  to  the  woods  "  on  the  morning  of  a  beautiful  clear  day 
early  in  the  spring  of  1820,  and  there  he  for  the  first  time  uttered 
a  spoken  prayer."  As  soon  as  he  began  praying  he  was  overcome 
by  some  power,  and  "thick  darkness"  gathered  around  him.  Just 
when  he  was  ready  to  give  himself  up  as  lost,  he  managed  to  call 
on  God  for  deliverance,  whereupon  he  saw  a  pillar  of  light 
descending  upon  him,  and  two  personages  of  indescribable  glory 
standing  in  the  air  above  him,  one  of  whom,  calling  him  by  name, 
said  to  the  other,  "This  is  my  beloved  Son,  hear  him."  Straight- 
way Joseph,  not  forgetting  the  main  object  of  his  going  to  the 
woods,  asked  the  two  personages  "which  of  all  the  sects  was 
right."  He  was  told  that  all  were  wrong,  and  that  he  must  join 
none  of  them  ;  that  all  creeds  were  an  abomination,  and  that  all 
professors  were  corrupt.     He  came  to  himself  lying  on  his  back. 

The  effect  on  the  boy  of  this  startling  manifestation  was  not 
radically  beneficial,  as  he  himself  concedes.     "  Forbidden  to  join 

1  Historical  Magazine,  May,  1870.  2  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XIV,  Supt. 


THE   REVELATION   OF   THE   BIBLE  3 1 

any  other  religious  sects  of  the  day,"  "  of  tender  years,"  and  badly 
treated  by  persons  who  should  have  been  his  friends,  he  admits 
that  in  the  next  three  years  he  "  frequently  fell  into  many  foolish 
errors,  and  displayed  the  weakness  of  youth  and  the  corruption  of 
human  nature,  which,  I  am  sorry  to  say,  led  me  into  diverse  temp- 
tations, to  the  gratification  of  many  appetites  offensive  in  the  sight 
of  God."  It  was  during  this  period  that  he  was  most  active  in  the 
use  of  his  "peek-stone." 

On  the  night  of  September  21,  1823,  to  proceed  with  his  own 
account,  when  again  praying  God  for  the  forgiveness  of  his  sins, 
the  room  became  light,  and  a  person  clothed  in  a  robe  of  exquisite 
whiteness,  and  having  "  a  countenance  truly  like  lightning,"  called 
him  by  name,  and  said  that  his  visitor  was  a  messenger  sent  from 
God,  and  that  his  name  was  Nephi.  This  was  a  mistake  on  the 
part  of  somebody,  because  the  visitor's  real  name  was  Moroni, 
who  hid  the  plates  where  they  were  deposited.     Smith  continues  :  — 

"  He  said  there  was  a  book  deposited,  written  upon  golden  plates,  giving  an 
account  of  the  former  inhabitants  of  this  continent  and  the  source  from  whence 
they  sprang.  He  also  said  that  the  fulness  of  the  Everlasting  Gospel  was  con- 
tained in  it,  as  delivered  by  the  Saviour  to  the  ancient  inhabitants.  Also,  there 
were  two  stones  in  silver  bows  (and  these  stones,  fastened  to  a  breastplate,  con- 
stituted what  is  called  the  Urim  and  Thummim)  deposited  with  the  plates,  and 
the  possession  and  use  of  these  stones  was  what  constituted  seers  in  ancient  or 
former  times,  and  that  God  had  prepared  them  for  the  purpose  of  translating  the 
book." 

The  messenger  then  made  some  liberal  quotations  from  the 
prophecies  of  the  Old  Testament  (changing  them  to  suit  his  pur- 
pose), and  ended  by  commanding  Smith,  when  he  got  the  plates, 
at  a  future  date,  to  show  them  only  to  those  as  commanded,  lest 
he  be  destroyed.  Then  he  ascended  into  heaven.  The  next  day 
the  messenger  appeared  again,  and  directed  Joseph  to  tell  his  father 
of  the  commandment  which  he  had  received.  When  he  had  done 
so,  his  father  told  him  to  go  as  directed.  He  knew  the  place  (ever 
since  known  locally  as  "  Mormon  Hill ")  as  soon  as  he  arrived 
there,  and  his  narrative  proceeds  as  follows :  — 

"Convenient  to  the  village  of  Manchester,  Ontario  Co.,  N.  Y.,  stands  a  hill 
of  considerable  size,  and  the  most  elevated  of  any  in  the  neighborhood.  On  the 
west  side  of  this  hill,  not  far  from  the  top,  under  a  stone  of  considerable  size,  lay 
the  plates,  deposited  in  a  stone  box ;  this  stone  was  thick  and  rounded  in  the 
middle  on  the  upper  side,  and  thinner  toward  the  edges,  so  that  the  middle  part 


32 


THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 


of  it  was  visible  above  the  ground,  but  the  edge  all  round  was  covered  with 
earth.  Having  removed  the  earth  and  obtained  a  lever,  which  I  got  fixed  under 
the  edge  of  the  stone,  and  with  a  little  exertion  raised  it  up,  I  looked  in,  and 
there,  indeed,  did  I  behold  the  plates,  the  Urim  and  Thummim  and  breastplate, 
as  stated  by  the  messenger.  The  box  in  which  they  lay  was  formed  by  laying 
stones  together  in  a  kind  of  cement.  In  the  bottom  of  the  box  were  laid  two 
stones  crosswise  of  the  box,  and  on  these  stones  lay  the  plates  and  the  other 
things  with  them.  I  made  an  attempt  to  take  them  out,  but  was  forbidden  by 
the  messenger.  I  was  again  informed  that  the  time  for  bringing  them  out  had 
not  yet  arrived,  neither  would  till  four  years  from  that  time ;  but  he  told  me  that 
I  should  come  to  that  place  precisely  one  year  from  that  time,  and  that  he  would 
there  meet  with  me,  and  that  I  should  continue  to  do  so  until  the  time  should 
come  for  obtaining  the  plates." 

Mother  Smith  gives  an  explanation  of  Joe's  failure  to  secure 
the  plates  on  this  occasion,  which  he  omits:  "As  he  was  taking 
them,  the  unhappy  thought  darted  through  his  mind  that  probably 
there  was  something  else  in  the  box  besides  the  plates,  which  would 
be  of  pecuniary  advantage  to  him.  .  .  .  Joseph  was  overcome  by 
the  power  of  darkness,  and  forgot  the  injunction  that  was  laid 
upon  him."  The  mistakes  which  the  Deity  made  in  Joe's  char- 
acter constantly  suggest  to  the  lay  reader  the  query  why  the  Urim 
and  Thummim  were  not  turned  on  Joe. 

On  September  22,  1827,  when  Joe  visited  the  hill  (following 
his  own  story  again),  the  same  messenger  delivered  to  him  the 
plates,  the  Urim  and  Thummim  and  the  breastplate,  with  the  warn- 
ing that  if  he  "  let  them  go  carelessly  "  he  would  be  "  cut  off,"  and 
a  charge  to  keep  them  until  the  messenger  called  for  them. 

Mother  Smith's  story  of  the  securing  of  the  plates  is  to  the 
effect  that  about  midnight  of  September  21  Joseph  and  his  wife 
drove  away  from  his  father's  house  with  a  horse  and  wagon  belong- 
ing to  a  Mr.  Knight.  He  returned  after  breakfast  the  next  morn- 
ing, bringing  with  him  the  Urim  and  Thummim,  which  he  showed 
to  her,  and  which  she  describes  as  "  two  smooth,  three-cornered 
diamonds  set  in  glass,  and  the  glasses  were  set  in  silver  bows  that 
were  connected  with  each  other  in  much  the  same  way  as  old-fash- 
ioned spectacles."  She  says  that  she  also  saw  the  breastplate 
through  a  handkerchief,  and  that  it  "  was  concave  on  one  side  and 
convex  on  the  other,  and  extended  from  the  neck  downward  as  far 
as  the  stomach  of  a  man  of  extraordinary  size.  It  had  four  straps  of 
the  same  material  for  the  purpose  of  fastening  it  to  the  breast.  .  .  . 


THE    REVELATION    OF   THE    BIBLE  33 

The  whole  plate  was  worth  at  least  $500."  The  spectacles  and 
breastplate  seem  to  have  been  more  familiar  to  Mother  Smith  than 
to  any  other  of  Joseph's  contemporaries  and  witnesses. 

The  substitution  of  the  spectacles  called  Urim  and  Thummim 
for  the  "  peek-stone  "  was  doubtless  an  idea  of  the  associate  in  the 
plot,  who  supplied  the  theological  material  found  in  the  Golden 
Bible.  Tucker  considers  the  "  spectacle  pretension "  an  after- 
thought of  some  one  when  the  scheme  of  translating  the  plates 
into  a  Bible  was  evolved,  as  "  it  was  not  heard  of  outside  of  the 
Smith  family  for  a  considerable  period  subsequent  to  the  first 
story."  1  This  is  confirmed  by  the  elder  Smith's  early  account 
of  the  discovery.  It  would  be  very  natural  that  Rigdon,  with  his 
Bible  knowledge,  should  substitute  the  more  respectable  Urim  and 
Thummim  for  the  "  peek-stone  "  of  ill-repute,  as  the  medium  of 
translation. 

The  Urim  and  Thummim  were  the  articles  named  by  the  Lord 
to  Moses  in  His  description  of  the  priestly  garments  of  Aaron. 
The  Bible  leaves  them  without  description  ; 2  the  following  verses 
contain  all  that  is  said  of  them :  Exodus  xxviii.  30 ;  Leviticus 
viii.  8;  Numbers  xxvii.  21;  Deuteronomy  xxxiii.  8;  1  Samuel 
xxviii.  6 ;  Ezra  ii.  63 ;  NeKemiah  vii.  65.  Only  a  pretence  of 
using  spectacles  in  the  work  of  translating  was  kept  up,  later 
descriptions  of  the  process  by  Joe's  associates  referring  constantly 
to  the  employment  of  the  stone. 

Joe  says  that  while  the  plates  were  in  his  possession  "  multi- 
tudes "  tried  to  get  them  away  from  him,  but  that  he  succeeded 
in  keeping  them  until  they  were  translated,  and  then  delivered 
them  again  to  the  messenger,  who  still  retains  them.  Mother 
Smith  tells  a  graphic  story  of  attempts  to  get  the  plates  away 

1  "  Origin,  Rise,  and  Progress  of  Mormonism,"  p.  33. 

2  "  The  Hebrew  words  are  generally  considered  to  be  plurales  excellenticz,  denoting 
light  (that  is,  revelation)  and  truth.  .  .  .  There  are  two  principal  opinions  respecting 
the  Urim  and  Thummim.  One  is  that  these  words  simply  denote  the  four  rows  of  pre- 
cious stones  in  the  breastplate  of  the  high  priest,  and  are  so  called  from  their  brilliancy 
and  perfection;  which  stones,  in  answer  to  an  appeal  to  God  in  difficult  cases,  indicated 
His  mind  and  will  by  some  supernatural  appearance.  .  .  .  The  other  principal  opinion 
is  that  the  Urim  and  Thummim  were  two  small  oracular  images  similar  to  the  Teraphim, 
personifying  revelation  and  truth,  which  were  placed  in  the  cavity  or  pouch  formed  by 
the  folds  of  the  breastplate,  and  which  uttered  oracles  by  a  voice.  .  .  .  We  incline  to 
Mr.  Mede's  opinion  that  the  Urim  and  Thummim  were  '  things  well  known  to  the  patri- 
archs '  as  divinely  appointed  means  of  inquiries  of  the  Lord,  suited  to  an  infantile  state 
of  religion."  —  "Cyclopedia  of  Biblical  Literature,"  Kitto  and  Alexander,  editors. 

D 


34  THE  STORY  OF  THE  MORMONS 

from  her  son,  and  says  that  when  he  first  received  them  he  hid 
them  until  the  next  day  in  a  rotten  birch  log,  bringing  them  home 
wrapped  in  his  linen  frock  under  his  arm.1  Later,  she  says,  he 
hid  them  in  a  hole  dug  in  the  hearth  of  their  house,  and  again  in 
a  pile  of  flax  in  a  cooper  shop ;  Willard  Chase's  daughter  almost 
found  them  once  by  means  of  a  peek-stone  of  her  own. 

Mother  Smith  says  that  Joseph  told  all  the  family  of  his  vision 
the  evening  of  the  day  he  told  his  father,  charging  them  to  keep 
it  secret,  and  she  adds  :  — 

"From  that  time  forth  Joseph  continued  to  receive  instructions  from  the 
Lord,  and  we  continued  to  get  the  children  together  every  evening  for  the  pur- 
pose of  listening  while  he  gave  us  a  relation  of  the  same.  I  presume  our  family 
presented  an  aspect  as  singular  as  any  that  ever  lived  upon  the  face  of  the  earth 
—  all  seated  in  a  circle,  father,  mother,  sons,  and  daughters,  and  giving  the  most 
profound  attention  to  a  boy  eighteen  years  old.  who  had  never  read  the  Bible 
through  in  his  life.  .  .  .  We  were  now  confirmed  in  the  opinion  that  God  was 
about  to  bring  to  light  something  upon  which  we  could  stay  our  mind,  or  that 
would  give  us  a  more  perfect  knowledge  of  the  plan  of  salvation  and  the  redemp- 
tion of  the  human  family." 

1  Elder  Hyde  in  his  "  Mormonism  "  estimates  that  "  from  the  description  given  of 
them  the  plates  must  have  weighed  nearly  two  hundred  pounds." 


CHAPTER  VI 

TRANSLATION   AND   PUBLICATION   OF   THE   BIBLE 

The  only  one  of  his  New  York  neighbors  who  seems  to  have 
taken  a  practical  interest  in  Joe's  alleged  discovery  was  a  farmer 
named  Martin  Harris,  who  lived  a  little  north  of  Palmyra.  ' 
Harris  was  a  religious  enthusiast,  who  had  been  a  Quaker  (as 
his  wife  was  still),  a  Uniyersalist,  a  Baptist,  and  a  Presbyterian, 
and  whose  sanity  it  would  have  been  difficult  to  establish  in  a 
surrogate's  court.  The  Rev.  Dr.  Clark,  who  knew  him  intimately, 
says,  "  He  had  always  been  a  firm  believer  in  dreams,  visions, 
and  ghosts."  *  Howe  describes  him  as  often  declaring  that  he 
had  talked  with  Jesus  Christ,  angels,  and  the  devil,  and  saying 
that  "  Christ  was  the  handsomest  man  he  ever  saw,  and  the  devil 
looked  like  a  jackass,  with  very  short,  smooth  hair  similar  to  that 
of  a  mouse."  Daniel  Hendrix  relates  that  as  he  and  Harris 
were  riding  to  the  village  one  evening,  and  he  remarked  on  the 
beauty  of  the  moon,  Harris  replied  that  if  his  companion  could 
only  see  it  as  he  had,  he  might  well  call  it  beautiful,  explain- 
ing that  he  had  actually  visited  the  moon,  and  adding  that  it 
"  was  only  the  faithful  who  were  permitted  to  visit  the  celestial 
regions."  Jesse  Townsend,  a  resident  of  Palmyra,  in  a  letter 
written  in  1833,  describes  him  as  a  visionary  fanatic,  unhappily 
married,  who  "  is  considered  here  to  this  day  a  brute  in  his 
domestic  relations,  a  fool  and  a  dupe  to  Smith  in  religion,  and  an 
unlearned,  conceited  hypocrite  generally."  His  wife,  in  an  affi- 
davit printed  in  Howe's  book  (p.  255),  says:  "He  has  whipped, 
kicked,  and  turned  me  out  of  the  house."  Harris,  like  Joe's 
mother,  was  a  constant  reader  of  and  a  literal  believer  in  the 
Bible.  Tucker  says  that  he  "could  probably  repeat  from  memory 
every  text  from  the  Bible,  giving  the  chapter  and  verse  in  each 
case."     This  seems  to  be  an  exaggeration. 

1  "  Gleanings  by  the  Way." 
35 


36  THE   STORY   OF  THE   MORMONS 

Mother  Smith's  account  of  Harris's  early  connection  with  the 
Bible  enterprise  says  that  her  husband  told  Harris  of  the  exist- 
ence of  the  plates  two  or  three  years  before  Joe  got  possession  of 
them ;  that  when  Joe  secured  them  he  asked  her  to  go  and  tell 
Harris  that  he  wanted  to  see  him  on  the  subject,  an  errand  not  to 
her  liking,  because  "  Mr.  Harris's  wife  was  a  very  peculiar 
woman,"  that  is,  she  did  not  share  in  her  husband's  superstition. 
Mrs.  Smith  did  not  succeed  in  seeing  Harris,  but  he  soon  after- 
ward voluntarily  offered  Joe  fifty  dollars  "  for  the  purpose  of  help- 
ing Mr.  Smith  do  the  Lord's  work."  As  Harris  was  very  "  close  " 
in  money  matters,  it  is  probable  that  Joe  offered  him  a  partnership 
in  the  scheme  at  the  start.  Harris  seems  to  have  placed  much 
faith  in  the  selling  quality  of  the  new  Bible.  He  is  said  to  have 
replied  to  his  wife's  early  declaration  of  disbelief  in  it:  "What  if 
it  is  a  lie.  If  you  will  let  me  alone  I  will  make  money  out  of  it."  * 
The  Rev.  Ezra  Booth  said :  "  Harris  informed  me  [after  his  re- 
moval to  Ohio]  that  he  went  to  the  place  where  Joseph  resided 
[in  Pennsylvania],  and  Joseph  had  given  it  [the  translation]  up 
on  account  of  the  opposition  of  his  wife  and  others ;  and  he  told 
Joseph,  '  I  have  not  come  down  here  for  nothing,  and  we  will  go 
on  with  it.'  "  2 

Just  at  this  time  Joe  was  preparing  to  move  to  the  neighbor- 
hood of  Harmony,  Pennsylvania,  having  made  a  trip  there  after  his 
marriage,  during  which,  Mr.  Hale's  affidavit  says,  "  Smith  stated 
to  me  that  he  had  given  up  what  he  called  '  glass-looking,'  and  that 
he  expected  to  work  hard  for  a  living  and  was  willing  to  do  so." 
Smith's  brother-in-law  Alva,  in  accordance  with  arrangements 
then  made,  went  to  Palmyra  and  helped  move  his  effects  to  a 
house  near  Mr.  Hale's.  Joe  acknowledges  that  Harris's  gift  or 
loan  of  fifty  dollars  enabled  him  to  meet  the  expenses  of  moving. 

Parley  P.  Pratt,  in  a  statement  published  by  him  in  London  in 
1854,  set  forth  that  Smith  was  driven  to  Pennsylvania  from 
Palmyra  through  fear  of  his  life,  and  that  he  took  the  plates  with 
him  concealed  in  a  barrel  of  beans,  thus  eluding  the  efforts  of 
persons  who  tried  to  secure  them  by  means  of  a  search  warrant. 
Tucker  says  that  this  story  rests  only  on  the  sending  of  a 
constable  after  Smith  by  a  man  to  whom  he  owed  a  small  debt. 
The  great  interest  manifested  in  the  plates  in  the  neighborhood 

1  Howe's  "  Mormonism  Unveiled,"  p.  254.  2  Ibid.,  p.  182. 


TRANSLATION    AND    PUBLICATION   OF   THE    BIBLE  37 

of  Palmyra  existed  only  in  Mormon  imagination  developed  in 
later  years. 

According  to  some  accounts,  all  the  work  of  what  was  called 
"translating"  the  writing  on  the  plates  into  what  became  the 
"Book  of  Mormon"  was  done  at  Joe's  home  in  New  York  State, 
and  most  of  it  in  a  cave,  but  this  was  not  the  case.  Smith  himself 
says :  "  Immediately  after  my  arrival  [in  Pennsylvania]  I  com- 
menced copying  the  characters  off  the  plates.  I  copied  a  consid- 
erable number  of  them,  and  by  means  of  the  Urim  and  Thummim 
I  translated  some  of  them,  which  I  did  between  the  time  I  arrived 
at  the  house  of  my  wife's  father  in  the  month  of  December  [1827] 
and  the  February  following." 

A  clear  description  of  the  work  of  translating  as  carried  on 
in  Pennsylvania  is  given  in  the  affidavit  made  by  Smith's  father- 
in-law,  Isaac  Hale,  in  1834.1  He  says  that  soon  after  Joe's  removal 
to  his  neighborhood  with  his  wife,  he  (Hale)  was  shown  a  box 
such  as  is  used  for  the  shipment  of  window  glass,  and  was  told 
that  it  contained  the  "  book  of  plates  "  ;  he  was  allowed  to  lift  it, 
but  not  to  look  into  it.  Joe  told  him  that  the  first  person  who 
would  be  allowed  to  see  the  plates  would  be  a  young  child.2  The 
affidavit  continues :  — 

"  About  this  time  Martin  Harris  made  his  appearance  upon  the  stage,  and 
Smith  began  to  interpret  the  characters,  or  hieroglyphics,  which  he  said  were 
engraven  upon  the  plates,  while  Harris  wrote  down  the  interpretation.  It  was 
said  that  Harris  wrote  down  1 16  pages  and  lost  them.  Soon  after  this  happened, 
Martin  Harris  informed  me  that  he  must  have  a  greater  witness,  and  said  that  he 
had  talked  with  Joseph  about  it.  Joseph  informed  him  that  he  could  not,  or 
durst  not,  show  him  the  plates,  but  that  he  [Joseph]  would  go  into  the  woods 
where  the  book  of  plates  was,  and  that  after  he  came  back  Harris  should  follow 
his  track  in  the  snow,  and  find  the  book  and  examine  it  for  himself.  Harris 
informed  me  that  he  followed  Smith's  directions,  and  could  not  find  the  plates 
and  was  still  dissatisfied. 

"The  next  day  after  this  happened  I  went  to  the  house  where  Joseph 
Smith,  Jr.,  lived,  and  where  he  and  Harris  were  engaged  in  their  translation  of 
the  book.  Each  of  them  had  a  written  piece  of  paper  which  they  were  com- 
paring, and  some  of  the  words  were,  '  my  servant  seeketh  a  greater  witness,  but 
no  greater  witness  can  be  given  him.'  ...  I  inquired  whose  words  they  were, 
and  was  informed  by  Joseph  or  Emma  (I  rather  think  it  was  the  former),  that 

1  Howe's  "  Mormonism  Unveiled,"  p.  264. 

2  Joe's  early  announcement  was  that  his  first-born  child  was  to  have  this  power,  but 
the  child  was  born  dead.     This  was  one  of  the  earliest  of  Joe's  mistakes  in  prophesying. 


$8  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

they  were  the  words  of  Jesus  Christ.  I  told  them  that  I  considered  the  whole 
of  it  a  delusion,  and  advised  them  to  abandon  it.  The  manner  in  which  he 
pretended  to  read  and  interpret  was  the  same  as  when  he  looked  for  the  money- 
diggers,  with  the  stone  in  his  hat  and  his  hat  over  his  face,  while  the  book  of 
plates  was  at  the  same  time  hid  in  the  woods. 

"  After  this,  Martin  Harris  went  away,  and  Oliver  Cowdery  came  and  wrote 
for  Smith,  while  he  interpreted  as  above  described.  .  .  . 

"Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  resided  near  me  for  some  time  after  this,  and  I  had  a 
good  opportunity  of  becoming  acquainted  with  him,  and  somewhat  acquainted 
with  his  associates  ;  and  I  conscientiously  believe,  from  the  facts  I  have  detailed, 
and  from  many  other  circumstances  which  I  do  not  deem  it  necessary  to  relate, 
that  the  whole  Book  of  Mormon  (so-called)  is  a  silly  fabrication  of  falsehood 
and  wickedness,  got  up  for  speculation,  and  with  a  design  to  dupe  the  credulous 
and  unwary." 

Harris's  natural  shrewdness  in  a  measure  overcame  his  fanati- 
cism, and  he  continued  to  press  Smith  for  a  sight  of  the  plates. 
Smith  thereupon  made  one  of  the  first  uses  of  those  "revelations" 
which  played  so  important  a  part  in  his  future  career,  and  he 
announced  one  (Section  5,  "  Doctrine  and  Covenants  " 1),  in  which 
"  I,  the  Lord  "  declared  to  Smith  that  the  latter  had  entered  into 
a  covenant  with  Him  not  to  show  the  plates  to  any  one  except  as 
the  Lord  commanded  him.  Harris  finally  demanded  of  Smith  at 
least  a  specimen  of  the  writing  on  the  plates  for  submission  to 
experts  in  such  subjects.  As  Harris  was  the  only  man  of  means 
interested  in  this  scheme  of  publication,  Joe  supplied  him  with  a 
paper  containing  some  characters  which  he  said  were  copied  from 
one  of  the  plates.  This  paper  increased  Harris's  belief  in  the 
reality  of  Joe's  discovery,  but  he  sought  further  advice  before 
opening  his  purse.  Dr.  Clark  describes  a  call  Harris  made  on 
him  early  one  morning,  greatly  excited,  requesting  a  private  inter- 
view. On  hearing  his  story,  Dr.  Clark  advised  him  that  the 
scheme  was  a  hoax,  devised  to  extort  money  from  him,  but  Harris 
showed  the  slip  of  paper  containing  the  mysterious  characters, 
and  was  not  to  be  persuaded. 

Seeking  confirmation,  however,  Harris  made  a  trip  to  New 
York  City  in  order  to  submit  the  characters  to  experts  there. 
Among  others,  he  called  on  Professor  Charles  Anthon.  His  inter- 
view with  Professor  Anthon  has  been  a  cause  of  many  and  con- 
flicting statements,  some  Mormons  misrepresenting  it  for  their  own 

1  All  references  to  the  "  Book  of  Doctrine  and  Covenants  "  refer  to  the  sections  and 
verses  of  the  Salt  Lake  City  edition  of  1890. 


TRANSLATION   AND   PUBLICATION   OF   THE   BIBLE  39 

purposes  and  others  explaining  away  the  professor's  accounts  of  it. 
The  following  statement  was  written  by  Professor  Anthon  in  reply 
to  an  inquiry  by  E.  D.  Howe :  — 

"New  York,  February  17,  1834. 

"  Dear  Sir  :  I  received  your  favor  of  the  9th,  and  lose  no  time  in  making  a 
reply.  The  whole  story  about  my  pronouncing  the  Mormon  inscription  to  be 
'  reformed  Egyptian  hieroglyphics '  is  perfectly  false.  Some  years  ago  a  plain, 
apparently  simple-hearted  farmer  called  on  me  with  a  note  from  Dr.  Mitchell,  of 
our  city,  now  dead,  requesting  me  to  decypher,  if  possible,  the  paper  which  the 
farmer  would  hand  me,  and  which  Dr.  M.  confessed  he  had  been  unable  to  under- 
stand. Upon  examining  the  paper  in  question,  I  soon  came  to  the  conclusion 
that  it  was  all  a  trick — perhaps  a  hoax.  When  I  asked  the  person  who  brought  it 
how  he  obtained  the  writing,  he  gave  me,  as  far  as  I  can  recollect,  the  following 
account:  A  'gold  book'  consisting  of  a  number  of  plates  fastened  together  in 
the  shape  of  a  book  by  wires  of  the  same  metal,  had  been  dug  up  in  the  northern 
part  of  the  state  of  New  York,  and  along  with  the  book  an  enormous  pair  of 
'spectacles'!  These  spectacles  were  so  large  that,  if  a  person  attempted  to 
look  through  them,  his  two  eyes  would  have  to  be  turned  toward  one  of  the 
glasses  merely,  the  spectacles  in  question  being  altogether  too  large  for  the 
breadth  of  the  human  face.  Whoever  examined  the  plates  through  the  spectacles, 
was  enabled,  not  only  to  read  them,  but  fully  to  understand  their  meaning.  All 
this  knowledge,  however,  was  confined  to  a  young  man  who  had  the  trunk  con- 
taining the  book  and  spectacles  in  his  sole  possession.  This  young  man  was 
placed  behind  a  curtain  in  the  garret  of  a  farmhouse,  and  being  thus  concealed 
from  view,  put  on  the  spectacles  occasionally,  or  rather,  looked  through  one  of 
the  glasses,  decyphered  the  characters  in  the  book,  and,  having  committed  some 
of  them  to  paper,  handed  copies  from  behind  the  curtain  to  those  who  stood  on 
the  outside.  Not  a  word,  however,  was  said  about  the  plates  being  decyphered 
'  by  the  gift  of  God.'  Everything  in  this  way  was  effected  by  the  large  pair 
of  spectacles.  The  farmer  added  that  he  had  been  requested  to  contribute  a 
sum  of  money  toward  the  publication  of-  the  'golden  book,1  the  contents  of 
which  would,  as  he  had  been  assured,  produce  an  entire  change  in  the  world,  and 
save  it  from  ruin.  So  urgent  had  been  these  solicitations,  that  he  intended  sell- 
ing his  farm,  and  handing  over  the  amount  received  to  those  who  wished  to  pub- 
lish the  plates.  As  a  last  precautionary  step,  however,  he  had  resolved  to  come 
to  New  York,  and  obtain  the  opinion  of  the  learned  about  the  meaning  of  the 
paper  which  he  had  brought  with  him,  and  which  had  been  given  him  as  part  of 
the  contents  of  the  book,  although  no  translation  had  been  furnished  at  the  time 
by  the  young  man  with  the  spectacles.  On  hearing  this  odd  story,  I  changed  my 
opinion  about  the  paper,  and,  instead  of  viewing  it  any  longer  as  a  hoax  upon  the 
learned,  I  began  to  regard  it  as  a  part  of  a  scheme  to  cheat  the  farmer  of  his 
money,  and  I  communicated  my  suspicions  to  him,  warning  him  to  beware  of 
rogues.  He  requested  an  opinion  from  me  in  writing,  which,  of  course,  I  declined 
giving,  and  he  then  took  his  leave,  carrying  his  paper  with  him. 

"This  paper  was  in  fact  a  singular  scrawl.      It  consisted  of  all  kinds  of 


40  THE  STORY  OF  THE  MORMONS 

crooked  characters,  disposed  in  columns,  and  had  evidently  been  prepared  by 
some  person  who  had  before  him  at  the  time  a  book  containing  various  alphabets. 
Greek  and.  Hebrew  letters,  crosses  and  flourishes,  Roman  letters  inverted,  or 
placed  sideways,  were  arranged  and  placed  in  perpendicular  columns ;  and  the 
whole  ended  in  a  rude  delineation  of  a  circle,  divided  into  various  compartments, 
decked  with  various  strange  marks,  and  evidently  copied  after  the  Mexican  Cal- 
endar, given  by  Humbolt,  but  copied  in  such  a  way  as  not  to  betray  the  source 
whence  it  was  derived.  I  am  thus  particular  as  to  the  contents  of  the  paper,  inas- 
much as  I  have  frequently  conversed  with  my  friends  on  the  subject  since  the 
Mormonite  excitement  began,  and  well  remember  that  the  paper  contained  any- 
thing else  but  '  Egyptian  Hieroglyphics.' 

"  Some  time  after,  the  farmer  paid  me  a  second  visit.  He  brought  with  him 
the  golden  book  in  print,  and  offered  it  to  me  for  sale.  I  declined  purchasing. 
He  then  asked  permission  to  leave  the  book  with  me  for  examination.  I  declined 
receiving  it,  although  his  manner  was  strangely  urgent.  I  adverted  once  more  to 
the  roguery  which  had  been,  in  my  opinion,  practised  upon  him,  and  asked  him 
what  had  become  of  the  gold  plates.  He  informed  me  that  they  were  in  a  trunk 
with  the  large  pair  of  spectacles.  I  advised  him  to  go  to  a  magistrate,  and 
have  the  trunk  examined.  He  said  'the  curse  of  God1  would  come  upon  him 
should  he  do  this.  On  my  pressing  him,  however,  to  pursue  the  course  which  I 
had  recommended,  he  told  me  he  would  open  the  trunk  if  I  would  take  '  the 
curse  of  God1  upon  myself.  I  replied  I  would  do  so  with  the  greatest  willing- 
ness, and  would  incur  every  risk  of  that  nature  provided  I  could  only  extricate 
him  from  the  grasp  of  the  rogues.     He  then  left  me. 

"I  have  thus  given  you  a  full  statement  of  all  that  I  know  respecting  the 
origin  of  Mormonism,  and  must  beg  you,  as  a  personal  favor,  to  publish  this  letter 
immediately,  should  you  find  my  name  mentioned  again  by  these  wretched  fanatics. 

"  Yours  respectfully, 

"Charles  Anthon."1 

While  Mormon  speakers  quoted  Anthon  as  vouching  for  the 
mysterious  writing,  their  writers  were  more  cautious.  P.  P.  Pratt, 
in  his  "Voice  of  Warning"  (1837),  said  that  Professor  Anthon  was 
unable  to  decipher  the  characters,  "  but  he  presumed  that  if  the 
original  records  could  be  brought,  he  could  assist  in  translating 
them."  Orson  Pratt,  in  his  "  Remarkable  Visions  "  (1848),  saw  in 
the  Professor's  failure  only  a  verification  of  Isaiah  xxix.  1 1  and  12  :  — 

"  And  the  vision  of  all  is  become  unto  you  as  the  words  of  a  book  that  is 
sealed,  which  men  deliver  to  one  that  is  learned,  saying,  Read  this,  I  pray  thee  : 
and  he  saith,  I  cannot,  for  it  is  sealed  :  and  the  book  is  delivered  to  him  that  is 
not  learned,  saying,  Read  this,  I  pray  thee :  and  he  saith,  I  am  not  learned." 

1  "  Mormonism  Unveiled,"  pp.  270-272.  A  letter  from  Professor  Anthon  to  the 
Rev.  Dr.  Coit,  rector  of  Trinity  Church,  New  Rochelle,  New  York,  dated  April  3,  1841, 
containing  practically  the  same  statement,  will  be  found  in  Clark's  "  Gleanings  by  the 
Way,-'  pp.  233-238. 


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TRANSLATION   AND    PUBLICATION    OF   THE    BIBLE  41 

John  D.  Lee,  in  his  "  Mormonism  Unveiled,"  mentions  the 
generally  used  excuse  of  the  Mormons  for  the  professor's  failure 
to  translate  the  writing,  namely,  that  Anthon  told  Harris  that 
"  they  were  written  in  a  sealed  language,  unknown  to  the  present 
age."  Smith,  in  his  autobiography,  quotes  Harris's  account  of  his 
interview  as  follows  :  — 

"I  went  to  New  York  City  and  presented  the  characters  which  had  been 
translated,  with  the  translation  thereof,  to  Prof.  Anthon,  a  man  quite  celebrated 
for  his  literary  attainments.  Prof.  Anthon  stated  that  the  translation  was  cor- 
rect, more  so  than  any  he  had  before  seen  translated  from  the  Egyptian.  I  then 
showed  him  those  which  were  not  yet  translated,  and  he  said  they  were  Egyp- 
tian, Chaldaic,  Assyriac,  and  Arabic,  and  he  said  they  were  the  true  characters." 

Harris  declared  that  the  professor  gave  him  a  certificate  to  this 
effect,  but  took  it  back  and  tore  it  up  when  told  that  an  angel  of 
God  had  revealed  the  plates  to  Joe,  saying  that  "  there  were  no 
such  things  as  ministering  angels."  This  account  by  Harris  of 
his  interview  with  Professor  Anthon  will  assist  the  reader  in  esti- 
mating the  value  of  Harris's  future  testimony  as  to  the  existence 
of  the  plates. 

Harris's  trip  to  New  York  City  was  not  entirely  satisfactory  to 
him,  and,  as  Smith  himself  relates,  "  He  began  to  tease  me  to  give 
him  liberty  to  carry  the  writings  home  and  show  them,  and  desired 
of  me  that  I  would  enquire  of  the  Lord  through  the  Urim  and 
Thummim  if  he  might  not  do  so."  Smith  complied  with  this 
request,  but  the  permission  was  twice  refused ;  the  third  time  it 
was  granted,  but  on  condition  that  Harris  would  show  the  manu- 
script translation  to  only  five  persons,  who  were  named,  one  of 
them  being  his  wife. 

In  including  Mrs.  Harris  in  this  list,  the  Lord  made  one  of 
the  greatest  mistakes  into  which  he  ever  fell  in  using  Joe  as  a 
mouthpiece.  Mrs.  Harris's  Quaker  belief  had  led  her  from  the 
start  to  protest  against  the  Bible  scheme,  and  to  warn  her  husband 
against  the  Smith  family,  and  she  vigorously  opposed  his  invest- 
ment of  any  money  in  the  publication  of  the  book.  On  the  occa- 
sion of  his  first  visit  to  Joe  in  Pennsylvania,  according  to  Mother 
Smith,  Mrs.  Harris  was  determined  to  accompany  him,  and  he  had 
to  depart  without  her  knowledge ;  and  when  he  went  the  second 
time,  she  did  accompany  him,  and  she  ransacked  the  house  to  find 
the  "  record  "  (as  the  plates  are  often  called  in  the  Smiths'  writ- 


42 


THE  STORY  OF  THE  MORMONS 


ings).  When  Harris  returned  home  with  the  translated  pages 
which  Joe  intrusted  to  him  (in  July,  1828),  he  showed  them  to  his 
family  and  to  others,  who  tried  in  vain  to  convince  him  that  he 
was  a  dupe.  Mrs.  Harris  decided  on  a  more  practical  course. 
Getting  possession  of  the  papers,  where  Harris  had  deposited  them 
for  safe  keeping,  she  refused  to  restore  them  to  him.  What  eventu- 
ally became  of  them  is  uncertain,  one  report  being  that  she  after- 
ward burned  them. 

This  should  have  caused  nothing  more  serious  in  the  way  of 
delay  than  the  time  required  to  retranslate  these  pages ;  for  cer- 
tainly a  well-equipped  Divinity,  who  was  revealing  a  new  Bible  to 
mankind,  and  supplying  so  powerful  a  means  of  translation  as  the 
Urim  and  Thummim,  could  empower  the  translator  to  repeat  the 
words  first  written.  Indeed,  the  descriptions  of  the  method  of 
translation  given  afterward  by  Smith's  confederates  would  seem  to 
prove  that  there  could  have  been  but  one  version  of  any  transla- 
tion of  the  plates,  no  matter  how  many  times  repeated.  Thus, 
Harris  described  the  translating  as  follows  :  — 

"  By  aid  of  the  seer  stone  [no  mention  of  the  magic  spectacles]  sentences 
would  appear  and  were  read  by  the  prophet  and  written  by  Martin,  and,  when 
finished,  he  would  say  '  written ' ;  and  if  correctly  written,  that  sentence  would 
disappear,  and  another  appear  in  its  place  ;  but  if  not  written  correctly,  it  remained 
until  corrected,  so  that  the  translation  was  just  as  it  was  engraven  on  the  plates, 
precisely  in  the  language  then  used."  * 

David  Whitmer,  in  an  account  of  this  process  written  in  his 

later  years,  said  :  — 

"Joseph  would  put  the  seer  stone  into  a  hat  [more  testimony  against  the  use 
of  the  spectacles]  and  put  his  face  in  the  hat,  drawing  it  closely  around  his  face 
to  exclude  the  light  ;  and  in  the  darkness  the  spiritual  light  would  shine.  A 
piece  of  something  resembling  parchment  would  appear,  and  on  that  appeared  the 
writing.  One  character  at  a  time  would  appear,  and  under  it  was  the  translation 
in  English.  Brother  Joseph  would  read  off  the  English  to  O.  Cowdery,  who  was 
his  principal  scribe,  and  when  it  was  written  down  and  repeated  to  brother  Joseph 
to  see  if  it  were  correct,  then  it  would  disappear  and  another  character  with  the 
interpretation  would  appear."2 

But  to  Joseph  the  matter  of  reproducing  the  lost  pages  of  the 
translation  did  not  seem  simple.  When  Harris's  return  to  Penn- 
sylvania was  delayed,  Joe  became  anxious  and  went  to  Palmyra  to 

1  Elder  Edward  Stevenson  in  the  Deseret  News  (quoted  in  Reynold's  "  Mystery  of 
the  Manuscript  Fund,"  p.  91).  2  "  Address  to  Believers  in  the  Book  of  Mormon." 


TRANSLATION   AND   PUBLICATION   OF   THE   BIBLE  43 

learn  what  delayed  him,  and  there  he  heard  of  Mrs.  Harris's  theft 
of  the  pages.  His  mother  reports  him  as  saying  in  announcing  it, 
"O  my  God,  all  is  lost!  all  is  lost!"  Why  the  situation  was  as 
serious  to  a  sham  translator  as  it  would  have  been  simple  to  an 
honest  one  is  easily  understood.  Whenever  Smith  offered  a  second 
translation  of  the  missing  pages  which  differed  from  the  first,  a 
comparison  of  them  with  the  latter  would  furnish  proof  positive  of 
the  fraudulent  character  of  his  pretensions. 

All  the  partners  in  the  business  had  to  share  in  the  punishment 
for  what  had  occurred.  The  Smiths  lost  all  faith  in  Harris.  Joe 
says  that  Harris  broke  his  pledge  about  showing  the  translation 
only  to  five  persons,  and  Mother  Smith  says  that  because  of  this 
offence  "  a  dense  fog  spread  itself  over  his  fields  and  blighted  his 
wheat."  When  Joe  returned  to  Pennsylvania  an  angel  appeared  to 
him,  his  mother  says,  and  ordered  him  to  give  up  the  Urim  and 
Thummim,  promising,  however,  to  restore  them  if  he  was  humble 
and  penitent,  and  "  if  so,  it  will  be  on  the  22d  of  September."  1 
Here  may  be  noted  one  of  those  failures  of  mother  and  son  to 
agree  in  their  narratives  which  was  excuse  enough  for  Brigham 
Young  to  try  to  suppress  the  mother's  book.  Joe  mentions  a 
"revelation"  dated  July,  1828  (Sec.  3,  "Doctrine  and  Cove- 
nants "),  in  which  Harris  was  called  "  a  wicked  man,"  and  which 
told  Smith  that  he  had  lost  his  privileges  for  a  season,  and  he 
adds,  "  After  I  had  obtained  the  above  revelation,  both  the  plates 
and  the  Urim  and  Thummim  were  taken  from  me  again,  but  in  a 
few  days  they  were  returned  to  me."  2 

For  some  ten  months  after  this  the  work  of  translation  was 
discontinued,  although  Mother  Smith  says  that  when  she  and  his 
father  visited  the  prophet  in  Pennsylvania  two  months  after  his 
return,  the  first  thing  they  saw  was  "a  red  morocco  trunk  lying 
on  Emma's  bureau  which,  Joseph  shortly  informed  me,  contained 
the  Urim  and  Thummim  and  the  plates."  Mrs.  Harris's  act  had 
evidently  thrown  the  whole  machinery  of  translation  out  of  gear, 
and  Joe  had  to  await  instructions  from  his  human  adviser  before 
a  plan  of  procedure  could  be  announced.  During  this  period  (in 
which  Joe  says  he  worked  on  his  father's  farm),  says  Tucker,  "  the 
stranger  [supposed  to  be  Rigdon]  had  again  been  at  Smith's,  and 

1  "Biographical  Sketches,"  by  Lucy  Smith,  p.  125. 

2  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XIV,  p.  8. 


44 


THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 


the    prophet  had   been   away    from    home,    maybe   to  repay   the 
former's  visits."  * 

Two  matters  were  decided  on  in  these  consultations,  viz.,  that 
no  attempt  would  be  made  to  retranslate  the  lost  pages,  and  that  a 
second  copy  of  all  the  rest  of  the  manuscript  should  be  prepared, 
to  guard  against  a  similar  perplexity  in  case  of  the  loss  of  later 
pages.  The  proof  of  the  latter  statement  I  find  in  the  fact  that  a 
second  copy  did  exist.  Ebenezer  Robinson,  who  was  a  leading 
man  in  the  church  from  the  time  of  its  establishment  in  Ohio  until 
Smith's  death,  says  in  his  recollections  that,  when  the  people 
assembled  on  October  2,  1841,  to  lay  the  corner-stone  of  Nauvoo 
House,  Smith  said  he  had  a  document  to  put  into  the  corner-stone, 
and  Robinson  went  with  him  to  his  house  to  procure  it.  Robinson's 
story  proceeds  as  follows  :  — 

"  He  got  a  manuscript  copy  of  the  Book  of  Mormon,  and  brought  it  into  the 
room  where  we  were  standing,  and  said, '  I  will  examine  to  see  if  it  is  all  here ' ;  and 
as  he  did  so  I  stood  near  him,  at  his  left  side,  and  saw  distinctly  the  writing  as  he 
turned  up  the  pages  until  he  hastily  went  through  the  book  and  satisfied  himself 
that  it  was  all  there,  when  he  said,  '  I  have  had  trouble  enough  with  this  thing1 ; 
which  remark  struck  me  with  amazement,  as  I  looked  upon  it  as  a  sacred  treasure.1' 

Robinson  says  that  the  manuscript  was  written  on  foolscap  paper 
and  most  of  it  in  Oliver  Cowdery's  handwriting.  He  explains  that 
two  copies  were  necessary,  "  as  the  printer  who  printed  the  first  edi- 
tion of  the  book  had  to  have  a  copy,  as  they  would  not  put  the  origi- 
nal copy  into  his  hands  for  fear  of  its  being  altered.  This  accounts 
for  David  Whitmer  having  a  copy  and  Joseph  Smith  having  one."2 

Major  Bideman,  who  married  the  prophet's  widow,  partly  com- 
pleted and  occupied  Nauvoo  House  after  the  departure  of  the 
Mormons  for  Utah,  and  some  years  later  he  took  out  the  corner- 
stone and  opened  it,  but  found  the  manuscript  so  ruined  by  mois- 
ture that  only  a  little  was  legible. 

1  "  Origin,  Rise,  and  Progress  of  Mormonism,"  p.  48. 

2  The  Return,  Vol.  II,  p.  314.  Ebenezer  Robinson,  a  printer,  joined  the  Mormons 
at  Kirtland,  followed  Smith  to  Missouri,  and  went  with  the  flock  to  Nauvoo,  where  he 
and  the  prophet's  brother,  Don  Carlos,  established  the  Times  and  Seasons.  When  the 
doctrine  of  polygamy  was  announced  to  him  and  his  wife,  they  rejected  it,  and  he  fol- 
lowed Rigdon  to  Pennsylvania  when  Rigdon  was  turned  out  by  Young.  In  later  years 
he  was  engaged  in  business  enterprises  in  Iowa,  and  was  a  resident  of  Davis  City  when 
David  Whitmer  announced  the  organization  of  his  church  in  Missouri,  and,  not  accept- 
ing the  view  of  the  prophet  entertained  by  his  descendants  in  the  Reorganized  Church, 
Robinson  accepted  baptism  from  Whitmer.  The  Return  was  started  by  him  in  January, 
1SS9,  and  continued  until  his  death,  in  its  second  year.  His  reminiscences  of  early 
Mormon  experiences,  which  were  a  feature  of  the  publication,  are  of  value. 


TRANSLATION   AND   PUBLICATION   OF   THE   BIBLE  45 

In  regard  to  the  missing  pages,  it  was  decided  to  announce  a 
revelation,  which  is  dated  May,  1829  (Sec.  10,  "  Doctrine  and  Cove- 
nants "),  stating  that  the  lost  pages  had  got  into  the  hands  of 
wicked  men,  that  "  Satan  has  put  it  into  their  hearts  to  alter  the 
words  which  you  have  caused  to  be  written,  or  which  you  have 
translated,"  in  accordance  with  a  plan  of  the  devil  to  destroy 
Smith's  work.  He  was  directed  therefore  to  translate  from  the 
plates  of  Nephi,  which  contained  a  "  more  particular  account  "  than 
the  Book  of  Lehi  from  which  the  original  translation  was  made. 

When  Smith  began  translating  again,  Harris  was  not  reem- 
ployed, but  Emma,  the  prophet's  wife,  acted  as  his  scribe  until 
April  15,  1829,  when  a  new  personage  appeared  upon  the  scene. 
This  was  Oliver  Cowdery. 

Cowdery  was  a  blacksmith  by  trade,  but  gave  up  that  occupa- 
tion, and,  while  Joe  was  translating  in  Pennsylvania,  secured  the 
place  of  teacher  in  the  district  where  the  Smiths  lived,  and  boarded 
with  them.  They  told  him  of  the  new  Bible,  and,  according  to 
Joe's  later  account,  Cowdery  for  himself  received  a  revelation  of  its 
divine  character,  went  to  Pennsylvania,  and  from  that  time  was 
intimately  connected  with  Joe  in  the  translation  and  publication  of 
the  book. 

In  explanation  of  the  change  of  plan  necessarily  adopted  in  the 
translation,  the  following  preface  appeared  in  the  first  edition  of 
the  book,  but  was  dropped  later :  — 

"To  the  Reader. 

"  As  many  false  reports  have  been  circulated  respecting  the  following  work, 
and  also  many  unlawful  measures  taken  by  evil  designing  persons  to  destroy  me, 
and  also  the  work,  I  would  inform  you  that  I  translated,  by  the  gift  and  power  of 
God,  and  caused  to  be  written,  one  hundred  and  sixteen  pages,  the  which  I  took 
from  the  book  of  Lehi,  which  was  an  account  abridged  from  the  plates  of  Lehi, 
by  the  hand  of  Mormon ;  which  said  account,  some  person  or  persons  have  stolen 
and  kept  from  me,  notwithstanding  my  utmost  efforts  to  recover  it  again  — and 
being  commanded  of  the  Lord  that  I  should  not  translate  the  same  over  again, 
for  Satan  had  put  it  into  their  hearts  to  tempt  the  Lord  their  God,  by  altering  the 
words  ;  that  they  did  read  contrary  from  that  which  I  translated  and  caused  to  be 
written ;  and  if  I  should  bring  forth  the  same  words  again,  or,  in  other  words,  if 
I  should  translate  the  same  over  again,  they  would  publish  that  which  they  had 
stolen,  and  Satan  would  stir  up  the  hearts  of  this  generation,  that  they  might  not 
receive  this  work,  but  behold,  the  Lord  said  unto  me,  I  will  not  suffer  that  Satan 
shall  accomplish  his  evil  design  in  this  thing ;  therefore  thou  shalt  translate  from 
the  plates  of  Nephi  until  ye  come  to  that  which  ye  have  translated,  which  ye  have 


46  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

retained ;  and  behold,  ye  shall  publish  it  as  the  record  of  Nephi ;  and  thus  I  will 
confound  those  who  have  altered  my  words.  I  will  not  suffer  that  they  shall  de- 
stroy my  work ;  yea,  I  will  show  unto  them  that  my  wisdom  is  greater  than  the 
cunning  of  the  Devil.  Wherefore,  to  be  obedient  unto  the  commandments  of 
God,  I  have,  through  His  grace  and  mercy,  accomplished  that  which  He  hath  com- 
manded me  respecting  this  thing.  I  would  also  inform  you  that  the  plates  of 
which  hath  been  spoken,  were  found  in  the  township  of  Manchester,  Ontario 
County,  New  York.  —  The  Author." 

In  June,  1829,  Smith  accepted  an  invitation  to  change  his  resi- 
dence to  the  house  of  Peter  Whitmer,  who,  with  his  sons,  David, 
John,  and  Peter,  Jr.,  lived  at  Fayette,  Seneca  County,  New  York, 
the  Whitmers  promising  his  board  free  and  their  assistance  in  the 
work  of  translation.  There,  Smith  says,  they  resided  "until  the 
translation  was  finished  and  the  copyright  secured." 

As  five  of  the  Whitmers  were  "  witnesses  "  to  the  existence  of 
the  plates,  and  David  continued  to  be  a  person  of  influence  in 
Mormon  circles*  throughout  his  long  life,  information  about  them 
is  of  value.  The  prophet's  mother  again  comes  to  our  aid,  although 
her  account  conflicts  with  her  son's.  The  prophet  says  that  David 
Whitmer  brought  the  invitation  to  take  up  quarters  at  his  father's, 
and  volunteered  the  offer  of  free  board  and  assistance.  Mother 
Smith  says  that  one  day,  as  Joe  was  translating  the  plates,  he  came, 
in  the  midst  of  the  words  of  the  Holy  Writ,  to  a  commandment  to 
write  at  once  to  David  Whitmer,  requesting  him  to  come  immedi- 
ately and  take  the  prophet  and  Cowdery  to  his  house,  "  as  an  evil- 
designing  people  were  seeking  to  take  away  his  [Joseph's]  life  in 
order  to  prevent  the  work  of  God  from  going  forth  to  the  world." 
When  the  letter  arrived,  David's  father  told  him  that,  as  they  had 
wheat  sown  that  would  require  two  days'  harrowing,  and  a  quantity 
of  plaster  to  spread,  he  could  not  go  "  unless  he  could  get  a  witness 
from  God  that  it  was  absolutely  necessary."  In  answer  to  his 
inquiry  of  the  Lord  on  the  subject,  David  was  told  to  go  as  soon 
as  his  wheat  was  harrowed  in.  Setting  to  work,  he  found  that  at 
the  end  of  the  first  day  the  two  days'  harrowing  had  been  com- 
pleted, and,  on  going  out  the  next  morning  to  spread  the  plaster,  he 
found  that  work  done  also,  and  his  sister  told  him  she  had  seen 
three  unknown  men  at  work  in  the  field  the  day  before  :  so  that 
the  task  had  been  accomplished  by  "  an  exhibition  of  supernatural 
power."  1 

1  "Biographical  Sketches,"  Lucy  Smith,  p.  135. 


TRANSLATION   AND   PUBLICATION   OF   THE   BIBLE  47 

The  translation  being  ready  for  the  press,  in  June,  1829  (I  fol- 
low Tucker's  account  of  the  printing  of  the  work),  Joseph,  his 
brother  Hyrum,  Cowdery,  and  Harris  asked  Egbert  B.  Grandin, 
publisher  of  the  Wayne  Sentinel  at  Palmyra,  to  give  them  an  esti- 
mate of  the  cost  of  printing  an  edition  of  three  thousand  copies, 
with  Harris  as  security  for  the  payment.  Grandin  told  them  he 
did  not  want  to  undertake  the  job  at  any  price,  and  he  tried  to 
persuade  Harris  not  to  invest  his  money  in  the  scheme,  assuring 
him  that  it  was  fraudulent.  Application  was  next  made  to  Thur- 
low  Weed,  then  the  publisher  of  the  Anti-Masonic  Inquirer,  at 
Rochester,  New  York.  "  After  reading  a  few  chapters,"  says  Mr. 
Weed,  "it  seemed  such  a  jumble  of  unintelligent  absurdities  that 
we  refused  the  work,  advising  Harris  not  to  mortgage  his  farm  and 
beggar  his  family."  Finally,  Smith  and  his  associates  obtained 
from  Elihu  F.  Marshall,  a  Rochester  publisher,  a  definite  bid  for 
the  work,  and  with  this  they  applied  again  to  Grandin,  explaining 
that  it  would  be  much  more  convenient  for  them  to  have  the  print- 
ing done  at  home,  and  pointing  out  to  him  that  he  might  as  well 
take  the  job,  as  his  refusal  would  not  prevent  the  publication  of  the 
book.  This  argument  had  weight  with  him,  and  he  made  a  defi- 
nite contract  to  print  and  bind  five  thousand  copies  for  the  sum  of 
$3000,  a  mortgage  on  Harris's  farm  to  be  given  him  as  security. 
Mrs.  Harris  had  persisted  in  her  refusal  to  be  in  any  way  a  party 
to  the  scheme,  and  she  and  her  husband  had  finally  made  a  legal 
separation,  with  a  division  of  the  property,  after  she  had  entered  a 
complaint  against  Joe,  charging  him  with  getting  money  from  her 
husband  on  fraudulent  representation.  At  the  hearing  on  this 
complaint,  Harris  denied  that  he  had  ever  contributed  a  dollar  to 
Joe  at  the  latter's  persuasion. 

Tucker,  who  did  much  of  the  proof-reading  of  the  new  Bible, 
comparing  it  with  the  manuscript  copy,  says  that,  when  the  print- 
ing began,  Smith  and  his  associates  watched  the  manuscript  with 
the  greatest  vigilance,  bringing  to  the  office  every  morning  as 
much  as  the  printers  could  set  up  during  the  day,  and  taking  it 
away  in  the  evening,  forbidding  also  any  alteration.  The  fore- 
man, John  H.  Gilbert,  found  the  manuscript  so  poorly  prepared 
as  regards  grammatical  construction,  spelling,  punctuation,  etc., 
that  he  told  them  that  some  corrections  must  be  made,  and  to  this 
they  finally  consented. 


48  THE  STORY  OF  THE  MORMONS 

Daniel  Hendrix,  in  his  recollections,  says  in  confirmation  of 
this :  — 

"  I  helped  to  read  proof  on  many  pages  of  the  book,  and  at  odd  times  set 
some  type.  .  .  .  The  penmanship  of  the  copy  furnished  was  good,  but  the 
grammar,  spelling  and  punctuation  were  done  by  John  H.  Gilbert,  who  was  chief 
compositor  in  the  office.  I  have  heard  him  swear  many  a  time  at  the  syntax  and 
orthography  of  Cowdery,  and  declare  that  he  would  not  set  another  line  of  the 
type.  There  were  no  paragraphs,  no  punctuation  and  no  capitals.  All  that  was 
done  in  the  printing  office,  and  what  a  time  there  used  to  be  in  straightening  sen- 
tences out,  too.  During  the  printing  of  the  book  I  remember  that  Joe  Smith  kept 
in  the  background." 

The  following  letter  is  in  reply  to  an  inquiry  addressed  by  me 
to  Albert  Chandler,  the  only  survivor,  I  think,  of  the  men  who 
helped  issue  the  first  edition  of  Smith's  book :  — 

"COLDWATER,  MlCH.,  Dec.   22,  1898. 

"  My  recollections  of  Joseph  Smith  Jr.  and  of  the  first  steps  taken  in  regard 
to  his  Bible  have  never  been  printed.  At  the  time  of  the  printing  of  the  Mormon 
Bible  by  Egbert  B.  Grandin  of  the  Sentinel  I  was  an  apprentice  in  the  book- 
bindery  connected  with  the  Sentinel  office.  I  helped  to  collate  and  stitch  the 
Gold  Bible,  and  soon  after  this  was  completed,  I  changed  from  book-binding  to 
printing.     I  learned  my  trade  in  the  Sentinel  office. 

"  My  recollections  of  the  early  history  of  the  Mormon  Bible  are  vivid  to-day. 
I  knew  personally  Oliver  Cowdery,  who  translated  the  Bible,  Martin  Harris,  who 
mortgaged  his  farm  to  procure  the  printing,  and  Joseph  Smith  Jr.,  but  slightly. 
What  I  knew  of  him  was  from  hearsay,  principally  from  Martin  Harris,  who 
believed  fully  in  him.  Mr.  Tucker's  <  Origin,  Rise,  and  Progress  of  Mormon- 
ism  '  is  the  fullest  account  I  have  ever  seen.  I  doubt  if  I  can  add  anything  to 
that  history. 

"  The  whole  history  is  shrouded  in  the  deepest  mystery.  Joseph  Smith  Jr., 
who  read  through  the  wonderful  spectacles,  pretended  to  give  the  scribe  the  ex- 
act reading  of  the  plates,  even  to  spelling,  in  which  Smith  was  wofully  deficient. 
Martin  Harris  was  permitted  to  be  in  the  room  with  the  scribe,  and  would  try  the 
knowledge  of  Smith,  as  he  told  me,  saying  that  Smith  could  not  spell  the  word 
February,  when  his  eyes  were  off  the  spectacles  through  which  he  pretended  to 
work.  This  ignorance  of  Smith  was  proof  positive  to  him  that  Smith  was  de- 
pendent on  the  spectacles  for  the  contents  of  the  Bible.  Smith  and  the  plates 
containing  the  original  of  the  Mormon  Bible  were  hid  from  view  of  the  scribe 
and  Martin  Harris  by  a  screen. 

"  I  should  think  that  Martin  Harris,  after  becoming  a  convert,  gave  up  his 
entire  time  to  advertising  the  Bible  to  his  neighbors  and  the  public  generally  in 
the  vicinity  of  Palmyra.  He  would  call  public  meetings  and  address  them  him- 
self. He  was  enthusiastic,  and  went  so  far  as  to  say  that  God,  through  the  Latter 
Day  Saints,  was  to  rule  the  world.     I  heard  him  make  this  statement,  that  there 


TRANSLATION    AND    PUBLICATION    OF   THE    BIBLE  49 

would  never  be  another  President  of  the  United  States  elected ;  that  soon  all 
temporal  and  spiritual  power  would  be  given  over  to  the  prophet  Joseph  Smith 
and  the  Latter  Day  Saints.  His  extravagant  statements  were  the  laughing  stock 
of  the  people  of  Palmyra.  His  stories  were  hissed  at,  universally.  To  give  you 
an  idea  of  Mr.  Harris's  superstitions,  he  told  me  that  he  saw  the  devil,  in  all  his 
hideousness,  on  the  road,  just  before  dark,  near  his  farm,  a  little  north  of  Pal- 
myra. You  can  see  that  Harris  was  a  fit  subject  to  carry  out  the  scheme  of 
organizing  a  new  religion. 

"  The  absolute  secrecy  of  the  whole  inception  and  publication  of  the  Mormon 
Bible  estopped  positive  knowledge.  We  only  knew  what  Joseph  Smith  would 
permit  Martin  Harris  to  publish,  in  reference  to  the  whole  thing. 

aThe  issuing  of  the  Book  of  Mormon  scarcely  made  a  ripple  of  excitement 
in  Palmyra.  Albert  Chandler.'11 

The  book  was  published  early  in  1830.  On  paper  the  sale  of 
the  first  edition  showed  a  profit  of  $3250  at  $1.25  a  volume,  that 
being  the  lowest  price  to  be  asked  on  pain  of  death,  according  to 
a  "  special  revelation  "  received  by  Smith.  By  the  original  agree- 
ment Harris  was  to  have  the  exclusive  control  of  the  sale  of  the 
book.  But  it  did  not  sell.  The  local  community  took  it  no  more 
seriously  than  they  did  Joe  himself  and  his  family.  The  printer 
demanded  his  pay  as  the  work  progressed,  and  it  became  neces- 
sary for  Smith  to  spur  Harris  on  by  announcing  a  revelation  (Sec. 
19,  "Doctrine  and  Covenants"),  saying,  "I  command  thee  that 
thou  shalt  not  covet  thine  own  property,  but  impart  it  freely  to  the 
printing  of  the  Book  of  Mormon."  Harris  accordingly  disposed 
of  his  share  of  the  farm  and  paid  Grandin. 

To  make  the  book  "go,"  Smith  now  received  a  revelation 
which  permitted  his  father,  soon  to  be  elevated  to  the  title  of  Patri- 
arch, to  sell  it  on  commission,  and  Smith,  Sr.,  made  expeditions 
through  the  country,  taking  in  pay  for  any  copies  sold  such  farm 
produce  or  "  store  goods "  as  he  could  use  in  his  own  family. 
How  much  he  "cut"  the  revealed  price  of  the  book  in  these 
trades  is  not  known,  but  in  one  instance,  when  arrested  in  Palmyra 
for  a  debt  of  $5.63,  he,  under  pledge  of  secrecy,  offered  seven  of 
the  Bibles  in  settlement,  and  the  creditor,  knowing  that  the  old 
man  had  no  better  assets,  accepted  the  offer  as  a  joke.2 

1  Mr.  Chandler  moved  to  Michigan  in  1835,  and  nas  been  connected  with  several 
newspapers  in  that  state,  editing  the  Kalamazoo  Gazette,  and  founding  and  publishing 
the  Coldwater  Sentinel.  He  was  elected  the  first  mayor  of  Coldwater,  serving  several 
terms.     He  was  in  his  eighty-fifth  year  when  the  above  letter  was  written. 

2  «  Origin,  Rise,  and  Progress  of  Mormonism,"  Tucker,  p.  63. 

E 


CHAPTER   VII 
THE   SPAULDING   MANUSCRIPT 

The  history  of  the  Mormon  Bible  has  been  brought  uninter- 
ruptedly to  this  point  in  order  that  the  reader  may  be  able  to 
follow  clearly  each  step  that  had  led  up  to  its  publication.  It  is 
now  necessary  to  give  attention  to  two  subjects  intimately  con- 
nected with  the  origin  of  this  book,  viz.,  the  use  made  of  what  is 
known  as  the  "  Spaulding  manuscript,"  in  supplying  the  historical 
part  of  the  work,  and  Sidney  Rigdon's  share  in  its  production. 

The  most  careful  student  of  the  career  of  Joseph  Smith,  Jr., 
and  of  his  family  and  his  associates,  up  to  the  year  1827,  will  fail 
to  find  any  ground  for  the  belief  that  he  alone,  or  simply  with 
their  assistance,  was  capable  of  composing  the  Book  of  Mormon, 
crude  in  every  sense  as  that  work  is.  We  must  therefore  accept, 
as  do  the  Mormons,  the  statement  that  the  text  was  divinely 
revealed  to  Smith,  or  must  look  for  some  directing  hand  behind 
the  scene,  which  supplied  the  historical  part  and  applied  the  theo- 
logical. The  "  Spaulding  manuscript "  is  believed  to  have  fur- 
nished the  basis  of  the  historical  part  of  the  work. 

Solomon  Spaulding,  born  in  Ashford,  Connecticut,  in  1761,  was 
graduated  from  Dartmouth  College  in  1785,  studied  divinity,  and 
for  some  years  had  charge  of  a  church.  His  own  family  described 
him  as  a  peculiar  man,  given  to  historical  researches,  and  evi- 
dently of  rather  unstable  disposition.  He  gave  up  preaching, 
conducted  an  academy  at  Cherry  Valley,  New  York,  and  later 
moved  to  Conneaut,  Ohio,  where  in  1812  he  had  an  interest  in  an 
iron  foundry.  His  attention  was  there  attracted  to  the  ancient 
mounds  in  that  vicinity,  and  he  set  some  of  his  men  to  work 
exploring  one  of  them.  "  I  vividly  remember  how  excited  he  be- 
came," says  his  daughter,  "  when  he  heard  that  they  had  exhumed 
some  human  bones,  portions  of    gigantic  skeletons,  and  various 

so 


THE   SPAULDING   MANUSCRIPT  5 1 

relics."  From  these  discoveries  he  got  the  idea  of  writing  a  fanci- 
ful history  of  the  ancient  races  of  this  country. 

The  title  he  chose  for  his  book  was  "  The  Manuscript  Found." 
He  considered  this  work  a  great  literary  production,  counted  on 
being  able  to  pay  his  debts  from  the  proceeds  of  its  sale,  and  was 
accustomed  to  read  selections  from  the  manuscript  to  his  neigh- 
bors with  evident  pride.  The  impression  that  such  a  production 
would  be  likely  to  make  on  the  author's  neighbors  in  that  frontier 
region  and  in  those  early  days,  when  books  were  scarce  and  authors 
almost  unknown,  can  with  difficulty  be  realized  now.  Barrett 
Wendell,  speaking  of  the  days  of  Bryant's  early  work,  says : 
"  Ours  was  a  new  country  .  .  .  deeply  and  sensitively  aware  that 
it  lacked  a  literature.  Whoever  produced  writings  which  could  be 
pronounced  adorable  was  accordingly  regarded  by  his  fellow  citi- 
zens as  a  public  benefactor,  a  great  public  figure,  a  personage  of 
whom  the  nation  could  be  proud."  1  This  feeling  lends  weight  to 
the  testimony  of  Mr.  Spaulding's  neighbors,  who  in  later  years 
gave  outlines  of  his  work. 

In  order  to  find  a  publisher  Mr.  Spaulding  moved  with  his 
family  to  Pittsburg,  Pennsylvania.  A  printer  named  Patterson 
spoke  well  of  the  manuscript  to  its  author,  but  no  one  was  found 
willing  to  publish  it.  The  Spauldings  afterward  moved  to 
Amity,  Pennsylvania,  where  Mr.  Spaulding  died  in  18 16.  His 
widow  and  only  child  went  to  live  with  Mrs.  Spaulding's  brother, 
W.  H.  Sabine,  at  Onondaga  Valley,  New  York,  taking  their  effects 
with  them.  These  included  an  old  trunk  containing  Mr.  Spaul- 
ding's papers.  "There  were  sermons  and  other  papers,"  says  his 
daughter,  "  and  I  saw  a  manuscript  about  an  inch  thick,  closely 
written,  tied  up  with  some  stories  my  father  had  written  for  me, 
one  of  which  he  called  '  The  Frogs  of  Windham.'  On  the  outside 
of  this  manuscript  were  written  the  words  '  Manuscript  Found.' 
I  did  not  read  it,  but  looked  through  it,  and  had  it  in  my  hands 
many  times,  and  saw  the  names  I  had  heard  at  Conneaut,  when 
my  father  read  it  to  his  friends."  Mrs.  Spaulding  next  went  to 
her  father's  house  in  Connecticut,  leaving  her  personal  property 
at  her  brother's.  She  married  a  Mr.  Davison  in  1820,  and  the 
old  trunk  was  sent  to  her  at  her  new  home  in  Hartwick,  Otsego 
County,  New  York.     The  daughter  was  married  to  a  Mr.  McKins- 

1  "  Literary  History  of  America." 


52 


THE    STORY    OF    THE    MORMONS 


try  in  1828,  and  her  mother  afterward  made  her  home  with  her  at 
Monson,  Massachusetts,  most  of  the  time  until  her  death  in  1844. 

When  the  newly  announced  Mormon  Bible  began  to  be  talked 
about  in  Ohio,  there  were  immediate  declarations  in  Spaulding's 
old  neighborhood  of  a  striking  similarity  between  the  Bible  story 
and  the  story  that  Spaulding  used  to  read  to  his  acquaintances 
there,  and  these  became  positive  assertions  after  the  Mormons  had 
held  a  meeting  at  Conneaut.  The  opinion  was  confidently  ex- 
pressed there  that,  if  the  manuscript  could  be  found  and  published, 
it  would  put  an  end  to  the  Mormon  pretence. 

About  the  year  1834  Mrs.  Davison  received  a  visit  at  Monson 
from  D.  P.  Hurlbut,  a  man  who  had  gone  over  to  the  Mormons 
from  the  Methodist  church,  and  had  apostatized  and  been  ex- 
pelled. He  represented  that  he  had  been  sent  by  a  committee  to 
secure  "The  Manuscript  Found"  in  order  that  it  might  be  com- 
pared with  the  Mormon  Bible.  As  he  brought  a  letter  from  her 
brother,  Mrs.  Davison,  with  considerable  reluctance,  gave  him  an 
introduction  to  George  Clark,  in  whose  house  at  Hartwick  she  had 
left  the  old  trunk,  directing  Mr.  Clark  to  let  Hurlbut  have  the 
manuscript,  receiving  his  verbal  pledge  to  return  it.  He  obtained 
a  manuscript  from  this  trunk,  but  did  not  keep  his  pledge.1 

The  Boston  Recorder  published  in  May,  1839,  a  detailed  state- 
ment by  Mrs.  Davison  concerning  her  knowledge  of  "The  Manu- 
script Found."  After  giving  an  account  of  the  writing  of  the 
story,  her  statement  continued  as  follows :  — 

"  Here  [in  Pittsburg]  Mr.  Spaulding  found  a  friend  and  acquaintance  in  the 
person  of  Mr.  Patterson,  who  was  very  much  pleased  with  it,  and  borrowed  it  for 
perusal.  He  retained  it  for  a  long  time,  and  informed  Mr.  Spaulding  that,  if  he 
would  make  out  a  title-page  and  preface,  he  would  publish  it,  as  it  might  be  a 
source  of  profit.  This  Mr.  Spaulding  refused  to  do.  Sidney  Rigdon,  who  has 
figured  so  largely  in  the  history  of  the  Mormons,  was  at  that  time  connected 
with  the  printing  office  of  Mr.  Patterson,  as  is  well  known  in  that  region,  and,  as 
Rigdon  himself  has  frequently  stated,  became  acquainted  with  Mr.  Spaulding's 
manuscript  and  copied  it.  It  was  a  matter  of  notoriety  and  interest  to  all  con- 
nected with  the  printing  establishment.  At  length  the  manuscript  was  returned 
to  its  author,  and  soon  after  we  removed  to  Amity  where  Mr.  Spaulding  de- 
ceased in  1 816.  The  manuscript  then  fell  into  my  hands,  and  was  carefully 
preserved." 

1  Condensed  from  an  affidavit  by  Mrs.  McKinstry,  dated  April  3,  1880,  in  Scribncr's 
Magazine  for  August,  1880. 


THE   SPAULDING   MANUSCRIPT  53 

This  statement  stirred  up  the  Mormons  greatly,  and  they  at 
once  pronounced  the  letter  a  forgery,  securing  from  Mrs.  Davison 
a  statement  in  which  she  said  that  she  did  not  write  it.  This  was 
met  with  a  counter  statement  by  the  Rev.  D.  R.  Austin  that  it 
was  made  up  from  notes  of  a  conversation  with  her,  and  was  cor- 
rect. In  confirmation  of  this  the  Quincy  [Massachusetts]  Whig 
printed  a  letter  from  John  Haven  of  Holliston,  Massachusetts,  giv- 
ing a  report  of  a  conversation  between  his  son  Jesse  and  Mrs. 
Davison  concerning  this  letter,  in  which  she  stated  that  the  letter 
was  substantially  correct,  and  that  some  of  the  names  used  in  the 
Mormon  Bible  were  like  those  in  her  husband's  story.  Rigdon 
himself,  in  a  letter  addressed  to  the  Boston  Journal,  under  date  of 
May  27,  1839,  denied  all  knowledge  of  Spaulding,  and  declared 
that  there  was  no  printer  named  Patterson  in  Pittsburg  during  his 
residence  there,  although  he  knew  a  Robert  Patterson  who  had 
owned  a  printing-office  in  that  city.  The  larger  part  of  his  letter 
is  a  coarse  attack  on  Hurlbut  and  also  on  E.  D.  Howe,  the  author 
of  "  Mormonism  Unveiled,"  whose  whole  family  he  charged  with 
"  scandalous  immoralities."  If  the  use  of  Spaulding's  story  in  the 
preparation  of  the  Mormon  Bible  could  be  proved  by  nothing  but 
this  letter  of  Mrs.  Davison,  the  demonstration  would  be  weak ; 
but  this  is  only  one  link  in  the  chain. 

Howe,  in  his  painstaking  efforts  to  obtain  all  probable  informa- 
tion about  the  Mormon  origin  from  original  sources,  secured  the 
affidavits  of  eight  of  Spaulding's  acquaintances  in  Ohio,  giving  their 
recollections  of  the  "Manuscript  Found."1  Spaulding's  brother 
John  testified  that  he  heard  many  passages  of  the  manuscript  read 
and,  describing  it,  he  said  :  — 

"  It  was  an  historical  romance  of  the  first  settlers  of  America,  endeavoring  to 
show  that  the  American  Indians  are  the  descendants  of  the  Jews,  or  the  lost  tribe. 
It  gave  a  detailed  account  of  their  journey  from  Jerusalem,  by  land  and  sea,  till 
they  arrived  in  America,  under  the  command  of  Nephi  and  Lehi.  They  after- 
wards had  quarrels  and  contentions,  and  separated  into  two  distinct  nations,  one 
of  wnich  he  denominated  Nephites,  and  the  other  Lamanites.  Cruel  and  bloody 
wars  ensued,  in  which  great  multitudes  were  slain.  ...  I  have  recently  read  the 
'  Book  of  Mormon,'  and  to  my  great  surprise  I  find  nearly  the  same  historical  mat- 
ter, names,  etc.,  as  they  were  in  my  brother's  writings.  I  well  remember  that  he 
wrote  in  the  old  style,  and  commenced  about  every  sentence  with  'and  it  came 
to  pass,'  or  '  now  it  came  to  pass,'  the  same  as  in  the  '  Book  of  Mormon,'  and,  ac- 

1  Howe's  "  Mormonism  Unveiled,"  pp.  278-287. 


54  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

cording  to  the  best  of  my  recollection  and  belief,  it  is  the  same  as  my  brother 
Solomon  wrote,  with  the  exception  of  the  religious  matter." 

John  Spaulding's  wife  testified  that  she  had  no  doubt  that  the 
historical  part  of  the  Bible  and  the  manuscript  were  the  same,  and 
she  well  recalled  such  phrases  as  "  it  came  to  pass." 

Mr.  Spaulding's  business  partner  at  Conneaut,  Henry  Lake,  tes- 
tified that  Spaulding  read  the  manuscript  to  him  many  hours,  that 
the  story  running  through  it  and  the  Bible  was  the  same,  and  he 
recalls  this  circumstance  :  "  One  time,  when  he  was  reading  to  me 
the  tragic  account  of  Laban,  I  pointed  out  to  him  what  I  considered 
an  inconsistency,  which  he  promised  to  correct,  but  by  referring  to 
the  '  Book  of  Mormon,'  I  find  that  it  stands  there  just  as  he  read 
it  to  me  then.  ...  I  well  recollect  telling  Mr.  Spaulding  that  the 
so  frequent  use  of  the  words  '  and  it  came  to  pass,' '  now  it  came  to 
pass,'  rendered  it  ridiculous." 

John  N.  Miller,  an  employee  of  Spaulding  in  Ohio,  and  a 
boarder  in  his  family  for  several  months,  testified  that  Spaulding 
had  written  more  than  one  book  or  pamphlet,  that  he  had  heard 
the  author  read  from  the  "  Manuscript  Found,"  that  he  recalled 
the  story  running  through  it,  and  added :  "  I  have  recently  exam- 
ined the  '  Book  of  Mormon,'  and  find  in  it  the  writings  of  Solomon 
Spaulding,  from  beginning  to  end,  but  mixed  up  with  Scripture 
and  other  religious  matter  which  I  did  not  meet  with  in  the  •  Man- 
uscript Found.'  .  .  .  The  names  of  Nephi,  Lehi,  Moroni,  and  in 
fact  all  the  principal  names,  are  brought  fresh  to  my  recollection 
by  the  '  Gold  Bible.'  " 

Practically  identical  testimony  was  given  by  the  four  other 
neighbors.  Important  additions  to  this  testimony  have  been  made 
in  later  years.  A  statement  by  Joseph  Miller  of  Amity,  Pennsyl- 
vania, a  man  of  standing  in  that  community,  was  published  in  the 
Pittsburg  Telegraph  of  February  6,  1879.  Mr.  Miller  said  that 
he  was  well  acquainted  with  Spaulding  when  he  lived  at  Amity, 
and  heard  him  read  most  of  the  "  Manuscript  Found,"  and  had 
read  the  Mormon  Bible  in  late  years  to  compare  the  two.  "  On 
hearing  read,"  he  says,  "the  account  from  the  book  of  the  battle 
between  the  Amlicites  (Book  of  Alma),  in  which  the  soldiers  of 
one  army  had  placed  a  red  mark  on  their  foreheads  to  distinguish 
them  from  their  enemies,  it  seemed  to  reproduce  in  my  mind,  not 
only  the  narration,  but  the  very  words  as  they  had  been  impressed 


THE   SPAULDING   MANUSCRIPT  55 

on  my  mind  by  the  reading  of  Spaulding's  manuscript.  .  .  .  The 
longer  I  live,  the  more  firmly  I  am  convinced  that  Spaulding's  man- 
uscript was  appropriated  and  largely  used  in  getting  up  the  '  Book 
of  Mormon.'  " 

Redick  McKee,  a  resident  of  Amity,  Pennsylvania,  when  Spaul- 
ding lived  there,  and  later  a  resident  of  Washington,  D.  C,  in  a 
letter  to  the  Washington  [Pennsylvania]  Reporter,  of  April  21, 
1869,  stated  that  he  heard  Spaulding  read  from  his  manuscript, 
and  added :  "  I  have  an  indistinct  recollection  of  the  passage  re- 
ferred to  by  Mr.  Miller  about  the  Amlicites  making  a  cross  with 
red  paint  on  their  foreheads  to  distinguish  them  from  enemies  in 
battle." 

The  Rev.  Abner  Judson,  of  Canton,  Ohio,  wrote  for  the  Wash- 
ington County,  Pennsylvania,  Historical  Society,  under  date  of 
December  20,  1880,  an  account  of  his  recollections  of  the  Spaul- 
ding manuscript,  and  it  was  printed  in  the  Washington  [Pennsyl- 
vania] Reporter  of  January  7,  1881.  Spaulding  read  a  large  part 
of  his  manuscript  to  Mr.  Judson's  father  before  the  author  moved 
to  Pittsburg,  and  the  son,  confined  to  the  house  with  a  lameness, 
heard  the  reading  and  the  accompanying  conversations.  He 
says :  — 

"  He  wrote  it  in  the  Bible  style.  '  And  it  came  to  pass,'  occurred  so  often 
that  some  called  him  '  Old  Come-to-pass. '  The  '  Book  of  Mormons1  follows  the 
romance  too  closely  to  be  a  stranger.  .  .  .  When  it  was  brought  to  Conneaut 
and  read  there  in  public,  old  Esquire  Wright  heard  it  and  exclaimed, ' "  Old  Come- 
to-pass  "  has  come  to  life  again.1 " x 

The  testimony  of  so  many  witnesses,  so  specific  in  its  details, 
seems  to  prove  the  identity  of  Spaulding's  story  and  the  story  run- 
ning through  the  Mormon  Bible.  The  late  President  James  H. 
Fairchild  of  Oberlin,  Ohio,  whose  pamphlet  on  the  subject  we 
shall  next  examine,  admits  that  "  if  we  could  accept  without  mis- 
giving the  testimony  of  the  eight  witnesses  brought  forward  in 
Howe's  book,  we  should  be  obliged  to  accept  the  fact  of  another 
manuscript"  (than  the  one  which  President  Fairchild  secured); 
but  he  thinks  there  is  some  doubt  about  the  effect  on  the  memory 
of  these  witnesses  of  the  lapse  of  years  and  the  reading  of  the  new 

1  Fuller  extracts  from  the  testimony  of  these  later  witnesses  will  be  found  in  Robert 
Patterson's  pamphlet,  "  Who  wrote  the  Book  of  Mormon,"  reprinted  from  the  "  History 
of  Washington  County,  Pa." 


56  THE   STORY    OF   THE   MORMONS 

Bible  before  they  recalled  the  original  story.  It  must  be  remem- 
bered, however,  that  this  resemblance  was  recalled  as  soon  as  they 
heard  the  story  of  the  new  Bible,  and  there  seems  no  ground  on 
which  to  trace  a  theory  that  it  was  the  Bible  which  originated  in 
their  minds  the  story  ascribed  to  the  manuscript. 

The  defenders  of  the  Mormon  Bible  as  an  original  work  received 
great  comfort  some  fifteen  years  ago  by  the  announcement  that 
the  original  manuscript  of  Spaulding's  "  Manuscript  Found  "  had 
been  discovered  in  the  Sandwich  Islands  and  brought  to  this  coun- 
try, and  that  its  narrative  bore  no  resemblance  to  the  Bible  story. 
The  history  of  this  second  manuscript  is  as  follows :  E.  D.  Howe 
sold  his  printing  establishment  at  Painesville,  Ohio,  to  L.  L.  Rice, 
who  was  an  antislavery  editor  there  for  many  years.  Mr.  Rice 
afterward  moved  to  the  Sandwich  Islands,  and  there  he  was  re- 
quested by  President  Fairchild  to  look  over  his  old  papers  to  see 
if  he  could  not  find  some  antislavery  matter  that  would  be  of 
value  to  the  Oberlin  College  library.  One  result  of  his  search 
was  an  old  manuscript  bearing  the  following  certificate  :  — 

"  The  writings  of  Solomon  Spaulding,  proved  by  Aaron  Wright,  Oliver  Smith, 

John  N.  Miller  and  others.     The  testimonies  of  the  above  gentlemen  are  now  in 

my  possession. 

"D.  P.  Hurlbut." 

President  Fairchild  in  a  paper  on  this  subject  which  has  been 
published1  gives  a  description  of  this  manuscript  (it  has  been 
printed  by  the  Reorganized  Church  at  Lamoni,  Iowa),  which 
shows  that  it  bears  no  resemblance  to  the  Bible  story.  But  the 
assumption  that  this  proves  that  the  Bible  story  is  original 
fails  immediately  in  view  of  the  fact  that  Mr.  Howe  made  no 
concealment  of  his  possession  of  this  second  manuscript.  Hurl- 
but  was  in  Howe's  service  when  he  asked  Mrs.  Davison  for  an 
order  for  the  manuscript,  and  he  gave  to  Howe,  as  the  result  of 
his  visit,  the  manuscript  which  Rice  gave  to  President  Fairchild. 
Howe  in  his  book  (p.  288)  describes  this  manuscript  substan- 
tially as  does  President  Fairchild,  saying  :  — 

"  This  is  a  romance,  purporting  to  have  been  translated  from  the  Latin,  found 
on  twenty-four  rolls  of  parchment  in  a  cave  on  the  banks  of  Conneaut  Creek,  but 
written  in  a  modern  style,  and  giving  a  fabulous  account  of  a  ship's  being  driven 

1  "Manuscript  of  Solomon  Spaulding  and  the  'Book  of  Mormon,'"  Tract  No.  77, 
Western  Reserve  Historical  Society,  Cleveland,  Ohio. 


THE    SPAULDING    MANUSCRIPT  57 

upon  the  American  coast,  while  proceeding  from  Rome  to  Britain,  a  short  time 
previous  to  the  Christian  era,  this  country  then  being  inhabited  by  the  Indians."1 

Mr.  Howe  adds  this  important  statement :  — 

"This  old  manuscript  has  been  shown  to  several  of  the  foregoing  witnesses, 
who  recognize  it  as  Spaulding's,  he  having  told  them  that  he  had  altered  his  first 
plan  of  writing,  by  going  further  back  with  dates,  and  writing  in  the  old  scripture 
style,  in  order  that  it  might  appear  more  ancient.  They  say  that  it  bears  no  re- 
semblance to  the  ' Manuscript  Found. ," 

If  Howe  had  considered  this  manuscript  of  the  least  impor- 
tance as  invalidating  the  testimony  showing  the  resemblance  be- 
tween the  "  Manuscript  Found  "  and  the  Mormon  Bible,  he  would 
have  destroyed  it  (if  he  was  the  malignant  falsifier  the  Mormons 
represented  him  to  be),  and  not  have  first  described  it  in  his  book, 
and  then  left  it  to  be  found  by  any  future  owner  of  his  effects.  Its 
rediscovery  has  been  accepted,  however,  even  by  some  non-Mor- 
mons, as  proof  that  the  Mormon  Bible  is  an  original  production.2 

Mrs.  Ellen  E.  Dickenson,  a  great-niece  of  Spaulding,  who  has 
painstakingly  investigated  the  history  of  the  much-discussed  man- 
uscript, visited  D.  P.  Hurlbut  at  his  home  near  Gibsonburg,  Ohio, 
in  1880  (he  died  in  1882),  taking  with  her  Oscar  Kellogg,  a  lawyer, 
as  a  witness  to  the  interview.3  She  says  that  her  visit  excited  him 
greatly.  He  told  of  getting  a  manuscript  for  Mr.  Howe  at  Hart- 
wick,  and  said  he  thought  it  was  burned  with  other  of  Mr.  Howe's 
papers.  When  asked,  "  Was  it  Spaulding's  manuscript  that  was 
burned  ?  "  he  replied  :  "  Mrs.  Davison  thought  it  was  ;  but  when 
I  just  peeked  into  it,  here  and  there,  and  saw  the  names  Mormon, 
Moroni,  Lamanite,  Lephi,  I  thought  it  was  all  nonsense.  Why,  if 
it  had  been  the  real  one,  I  could  have  sold  it  for  $3000 ; 4  but  I  just 
gave  it  to  Howe  because  it  was  of  no  account."  During  the  inter- 
view his  wife  was  present,  and  when  Mrs.  Dickenson  pressed  him 

1  Howe  says  in  his  book,  "The  fact  that  Spaulding  in  the  latter  part  of  his  life 
inclined  to  infidelity  is  established  by  a  letter  in  his  handwriting  now  in  our  possession." 
This  letter  was  given  by  Rice  with  the  other  manuscript  to  President  Fairchild  (who 
reproduces  it),  thus  adding  to  the  proof  that  the  Rice  manuscript  is  the  one  Hurlbut 
delivered  to  Howe. 

2  Preface  to  "  The  Mormon  Prophet,"  Lily  Dugall. 

3  A  full  account  of  this  interview  is  given  in  her  book,  "  New  Light  on  Mormonism  " 
(1885). 

4  There  have  been  surmises  that  Hurlbut  also  found  the  "  Manuscript  Found  "  in 
the  trunk  and  sold  this  to  the  Mormons.  He  sent  a  specific  denial  of  this  charge  to 
Robert  Patterson  in  1879. 


58  THE  STORY  OF  THE  MORMONS 

with  the  -question,  "  Do  you  know  where  the  '  Manuscript  Found  ' 
is  at  the  present  time  ? "  Mrs.  Hurlbut  went  up  to  him  and  said, 
"  Tell  her  what  you  know."  She  got  no  satisfactory  answer,  but 
he  afterward  forwarded  to  her  an  affidavit  saying  that  he  had 
obtained  of  Mrs.  Davison  a  manuscript  supposing  it  to  be  Spaul- 
ding's  "  Manuscript  Found,"  adding  :  "  I  did  not  examine  the  man- 
uscript until  after  I  got  home,  when  upon  examination  I  found  it 
to  contain  nothing  of  the  kind,  but  being  a  manuscript  upon  an 
entirely  different  subject.  This  manuscript  I  left  with  E.  D. 
Howe." 

With  this  presentation  of  the  evidence  showing  the  similarity 
between  Spaulding's  story  and  the  Mormon  Bible  narrative,  we 
may  next  examine  the  grounds  for  believing  that  Sidney  Rigdon 
was  connected  with  the  production  of  the  Bible. 


CHAPTER   VIII 
SIDNEY  RIGDON 

The  man  who  had  more  to  do  with  founding  the  Mormon  church 
than  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  even  if  we  exclude  any  share  in  the  pro- 
duction of  the  Mormon  Bible,  and  yet  who  is  unknown  even  by 
name  to  most  persons  to  whom  the  names  of  Joseph  Smith  and 
Brigham  Young  are  familiar,  was  Sidney  Rigdon.  Elder  John 
Hyde,  Jr.,  was  well  within  the  truth  when  he  wrote :  "  The  com- 
piling genius  of  Mormonism  was  Sidney  Rigdon.  Smith  had 
boisterous  impetuosity  but  no  foresight.  Polygamy  was  not  the 
result  of  his  policy  but  of  his  passions.  Sidney  gave  point,  direc- 
tion, and  apparent  consistency  to  the  Mormon  system  of  theology. 
He  invented  its  forms  and  the  manner  of  its  arguments.  .  .  . 
Had  it  not  been  for  the  accession  of  these  two  men  [Rigdon  and 
Parley  P.  Pratt]  Smith  would  have  been  lost,  and  his  schemes 
frustrated  and  abandoned."1 

Rigdon  (according  to  the  sketch  of  him  presented  in  Smith's 
autobiography,2  which  he  doubtless  wrote)  was  born  in  St.  Clair 
township,  Allegheny  County,  Pennsylvania,  on  February  19,  1793. 
His  father  was  a  farmer,  and  he  lived  on  the  farm,  receiving  only 
a  limited  education,  until  he  was  twenty-six  years  old.  He  then 
connected  himself  with  the  Baptist  church,  and  received  a  license 
to  preach.  Selecting  Ohio  as  his  field,  he  continued  his  work  in 
rural  districts  in  that  state  until  1821,  when  he  accepted  a  call 
to  a  small  Baptist  church  in  Pittsburg. 

Twenty  years  before  the  publication  of  the  Mormon  Bible, 
Thomas   and    Alexander    Campbell,    Scotchmen,   had   founded   a 

1  "  Mormonism  :  Its  Leaders  and  Designs  "  (1857).  Hyde,  an  Englishman,  joined 
the  Mormons  in  that  country  when  a  lad  and  began  to  preach  almost  at  once.     He  sailed 

.for  this  country  in  1853  and  joined  the  brethren  in  Salt  Lake  City.  Brigham  Young's 
rule  upset  his  faith,  and  he  abandoned  the  belief  in  1854.  Even  H.  H.  Bancroft  con- 
cedes him  to  have  been  "  an  able  and  honest  man,  sober  and  sincere." 

2  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XIV,  Supt. 

59 


60  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

congregation  in  Washington  County,  Pennsylvania,  out  of  which 
grew  the  religious  denomination  known  as  Disciples  of  Christ,  or 
Campbellites,  whose  communicants  in  the  United  States  numbered 
871,017  in  the  year  1890.  The  fundamental  principle  of  their 
teaching  was  that  every  doctrine  of  belief,  or  maxim  of  duty,  must 
rest  upon  the  authority  of  Scripture,  expressed  or  implied,  all 
human  creeds  being  rejected.  The  Campbells  (who  had  been 
first  Presbyterians  and  then  Baptists)  were  wonderful  orators  and 
convincing  debaters  out  of  the  pulpit,  and  they  drew  to  themselves 
many  of  the  most  eloquent  exhorters  in  what  was  then  the  western 
border  of  the  United  States.  Among  their  allies  was  another 
Scotchman,  Walter  Scott,  a  musician  and  school-teacher  by  profes- 
sion, who  assisted  them  in  their  newspaper  work  and  became  a 
noted  evangelist  in  their  denomination.  During  a  visit  to  Pitts- 
burg in  1823,  Scott  made  Rigdon's  acquaintance,  and  a  little  later 
the  flocks  to  which  each  preached  were  united.  In  August,  1824, 
Rigdon  announced  his  withdrawal  from  his  church.  Regarding 
his  withdrawal  the  sketch  in  Smith's  autobiography  says  :  — 

'•After  he  had  been  in  that  place  [Pittsburg]  some  time,  his  mind  was 
troubled  and  much  perplexed  with  the  idea  that  the  doctrines  maintained  by  that 
society  were  not  altogether  in  accordance  with  the  Scriptures.  This  thing  contin- 
ued to  agitate  his  mind  more  and  more,  and  his  reflections  on  these  occasions 
were  particularly  trying ;  for,  according  to  his  view  of  the  word  of  God,  no  other 
church  with  whom  he  could  associate,  or  that  he  was  acquainted  with,  was  right ; 
consequently,  if  he  was  to  disavow  the  doctrine  of  the  church  with  whom  he 
was  then  associated,  he  knew  of  no  other  way  of  obtaining  a  living,  except  by 
manual  labor,  and  at  that  time  he  had  a  wife  and  three  children  to  support." 

For  two  years  after  he  gave  up  his  church  connection  he 
worked  as  a  journeyman  tanner.  This  is  all  the  information  ob- 
tainable about  this  part  of  his  life.  We  next  find  him  preaching 
at  Bainbridge,  Ohio,  as  an  undenominational  exhorter,  but  follow- 
ing the  general  views  of  the  Campbells,  advising  his  hearers  to 
reject  their  creeds  and  rest  their  belief  solely  on  the  Bible. 

rln  June,  1826,  Rigdon  received  a  call  to  a  Baptist  church  at 
Mentor,  Ohio,  whose  congregation  he  had  pleased  when  he  preached 
I  the  funeral  sermon  of  his  predecessor.  His  labors  were  not  con- 
fined, however,  to  this  congregation.  We  find  him  acting  as  the 
"stated"  minister  of  a  Disciples'  church  organized  at  Mantua, 
Ohio,  in   1827,  preaching  with  Thomas  Campbell  at  Shalersville, 


SIDNEY    RIGDON  6l 

Ohio,  in  1828,  and  thus  extending  the  influence  he  had  acquired  as 
early  as  1820,  when  Alexander  Campbell  called  him  "the  great 
orator  of  the  Mahoning  Association."  In  1828  he  visited  his  old 
associate  Scott,  was  further  confirmed  in  his  faith  in  the  Disciples' 
belief,  and,  taking  his  brother-in-law  Bentley  back  with  him,  they 
began  revival  work  at  Mentor,  which  led  to  the  conversion  of  more 
than  fifty  of  their  hearers.  They  held  services  at  Kirtland,  Ohio,  L 
with  equal  success,  and  the  story  of  this  awakening  was  the  main 
subject  of  discussion  in  all  the  neighborhood  round  about.  The 
sketch  of  Rigdon  in  Smith's  autobiography  closes  with  this  tribute 
to  his  power  as  a  preacher:  "The  churches  where  he  preached 
were  no  longer  large  enough  to  contain  the  vast  assemblies.  No 
longer  did  he  follow  the  old  beaten  track,  .  .  .  but  dared  to  enter 
on  new  grounds,  .  .  .  threw  new  light  on  the  sacred  volume,  .  .  . 
proved  to  a  demonstration  the  literal  fulfilment  of  prophecy  .  .  . 
and  the  reign  of  Christ  with  his  Saints  on  the  earth  in  the  Mil- 
lennium." 

In  tracing  Rigdon's  connection  with  Smith's  enterprise,  atten- 
tion must  be  carefully  paid  both  to  Rigdon's  personal  character- 
istics, and  to  the  resemblance  between  the  doctrines  he  had  taught 
in  the  pulpit  and  those  that  appear  in  the  Mormon  Bible. 

Rigdon's  mental  and  religious  temperament  was  just  of  the  / 
character  to  be  attracted  by  a  novelty  in  religious  belief.  He, 
with  his  brother-in-law,  Adamson  Bentley,  visited  Alexander  Camp- 
bell in  1 82 1,  and  spent  a  whole  night  in  religious  discussion. 
When  they  parted  the  next  day,  Rigdon  declared  that  "  if  he  had 
within  the  last  year  promulgated  one  error,  he  had  a  thousand," 
and  Mr.  Campbell,  in  his  account  of  the  interview,  remarked,  "  I 
found  it  expedient  to  caution  them  not  to  begin  to  pull  down  any- 
thing they  had  builded  until  they  had  reviewed,  again  and  again, 
what  they  had  heard ;  not  even  then  rashly  and  without  much 
consideration."  1 

A  leading  member  of  the  church  at  Mantua  has  written,  "  Sid- 
ney Rigdon  preached  for  us,  and,  notwithstanding  his  extrava- 
gantly wild  freaks,  he  was  held  in  high  repute  by  many."2 

An  important  church  discussion  occurred  at  Warren,  Ohio,  in 

1  Millennial  Harbinger,  1848,  p.  523. 

2  "  Early  History  of  the  Disciples'  Church  in  the  Western  Reserve,"  by  A.  S.  Hay- 
den  (1876),  p.  239. 


62  THE  STORY  OF  THE  MORMONS 

1828.  Following  out  the  idea  of  the  literal  interpretation  of  the 
Scriptures  taught  in  the  Disciples'  church,  Rigdon  sprung  on  the 
meeting  an  argument  in  favor  of  a  community  of  goods,  holding 
that  the  apostles  established  this  system  at  Jerusalem,  and  that  the 
modern  church,  which  rested  on  their  example,  must  follow  them. 
Alexander  Campbell,  who  was  present,  at  once  controverted  this 
position,  showing  that  the  apostles,  as  narrated  in  Acts,  "  sold  their 
possessions  "  instead  of  combining  them  for  a  profit,  and  citing 
Bible  texts  to  prove  that  no  "community  system"  existed  in  the 
early  church.  This  argument  carried  the  meeting,  and  Rigdon 
left  the  assemblage,  embittered  against  Campbell  beyond  forgive- 
ness. To  a  brother  in  Warren,  on  his  way  home,  he  declared,  "  I 
have  done  as  much  in  this  reformation  as  Campbell  or  Scott,  and 
yet  they  get  all  the  honor  of  it."  This  claim  is  set  forth  specifi- 
cally in  the  sketch  of  Rigdon  in  Smith's  autobiography.  Referring 
to  Rigdon  and  Alexander  Campbell,  this  statement  is  there  made  :  — 

"  After  they  had  separated  from  the  different  churches,  these  gentlemen  were 
on  terms  of  the  greatest  friendship,  and  frequently  met  together  to  discuss  the 
subject  of  religion,  being  yet  undetermined  respecting  the  principles  of  the  doc- 
trine of  Christ  or  what  course  to  pursue.  However,  from  this  connection  sprung 
up  a  new  church  in  the  world,  known  by  the  name  of  '  Campbellites ' ;  they  call 
themselves  'Disciples.'  The  reason  why  they  were  called  Campbellites  was  in 
consequence  of  Mr.  Campbell's  periodical,  above  mentioned  [the  Christian  Bap- 
tisf],  and  it  being  the  means  through  which  they  communicated  their  sentiments 
to  the  world ;  other  than  this,  Mr.  Campbell  was  no  more  the  originator  of  the 
sect  than  Elder  Rigdon." 

Rigdon's  bitterness  against  the  Campbells  and  his  old  church 
more  than  once  manifested  itself  in  his  later  writings.  For  in- 
stance, in  an  article  in  the  Messenger  and  Advocate  (Kirtland),  of 
June,  1837,  ne  said:  "One  thing  has  been  done  by  the  coming 
forth  of  the  Book  of  Mormon.  It  has  puked  the  Campbellites 
effectually ;  no  emetic  could  have  done  so  half  as  well.  .  .  .  The 
Book  of  Mormon  has  revealed  the  secrets  of  Campbellism  and  un- 
folded the  end  of  the  system."  In  this  jealousy  of  the  Campbells, 
and  the  discomfiture  as  a  leader  which  he  received  at  their  hands, 
we  find  a  sufficient  object  for  Rigdon's  desertion  of  his  old  church 
associations  and  desire  to  build  up  something,  the  discovery  of 
which  he  could  claim,  and  the  government  of  which  he  could 
control. 

To  understand  the  strength  of  the  argument  that  the  doctrinal 


SIDNEY    RIGDON  63 

teachings  of  the  Mormon  Bible  were  the  work  of  a  Disciples' 
preacher  rather  than  of  the  ne'er-do-well  Smith,  it  is  only  neces- 
sary to  examine  the  teachings  of  the  Disciples'  church  in  Ohio  at 
that  time.  The  investigator  will  be  startled  by  the  resemblance 
between  what  was  then  taught  to  and  believed  by  Disciples'  con- 
gregations and  the  leading  beliefs  of  the  Mormon  Bible.  In  the 
following  examples  of  this  the  illustrations  of  Disciples'  beliefs  and 
teachings  are  taken  from  Hayden's  "  Early  History  of  the  Disci- 
ples' Church  in  the  Western  Reserve." 

The  literal  interpretation  of  the  Scriptures,  on  which  the  Mor- 
mon defenders  of  their  faith  so  largely  depend,  —  as  for  explana- 
tions of  modern  revelations,  miracles,  and  signs,  —  was  preached 
to  so  extreme  a  point  by  Ohio  Disciples  that  Alexander  Campbell 
had  to  combat  them  in  his  Millennial  Harbinger.  An  outcome  of 
this  literal  interpretation  was  a  belief  in  a  speedy  millennium, 
another  fundamental  belief  of  the  early  Mormon  church.  "  The 
hope  of  the  millennial  glory,"  says  Hayden,  "was  based  on  many 
passages  of  the  Holy  Scriptures.  .  .  .  Millennial  hymns  were 
learned  and  sung  with  a  joyful  fervor.  ...  It  is  surprising  even 
now,  as  memory  returns  to  gather  up  these  interesting  remains  of 
that  mighty  work,  to  recall  the  thorough  and  extensive  knowledge 
which  the  convert  quickly  obtained.  Nebuchadnezzar's  vision  .  .  . 
many  portions  of  the  Revelation  were  so  thoroughly  studied  that 
they  became  the  staple  of  the  common  talk."  Rigdon's  old  Pitts- 
burg friend,  Scott,  in  his  report  as  evangelist  to  the  church  asso- 
ciation at  Warren  in  1828,  said  :  "  Individuals  eminently  skilled  in 
the  word  of  God,  the  history  of  the  world,  and  the  progress  of 
human  improvements  see  reasons  to  expect  great  changes,  much 
greater  than  have  yet  occurred,  and  which  shall  give  to  political 
society  and  to  the  church  a  different,  a  very  different,  complexion 
from  what  many  anticipate.  The  millennium  —  the  millennium 
described  in  the  Scriptures  —  will  doubtless  be  a  wonder,  a  ter- 
rible wonder,  to  all." 

Disciples'  preachers  understood  that  they  spoke  directly  for 
God,  just  as  Smith  assumed  to  do  in  his  "revelations."  Referring 
to  the  preaching  of  Rigdon  and  Bentley,  after  a  visit  to  Scott  in 
March,  1828,  Hayden  says,  "They  spoke  with  authority,  for  the 
word  which  they  delivered  was  not  theirs,  but  that  of  Jesus  Christ." 
The  Disciples,  like  the  Mormons,  at  that  time  looked  for  the  return 


64  THE    STORY    OF   THE   MORMONS 

of  the  Jews  to  Jerusalem.  Scott 1  was  an  enthusiastic  preacher  of 
this.  "The  fourteenth  chapter  of  Zechariah,"  says  Hayden,  "was 
brought  forward  in  proof  —  all  considered  as  literal  —  that  the 
most  marvellous  and  stupendous  physical  and  climatic  changes 
were  to  be  wrought  in  Palestine ;  and  that  Jesus  Christ  the  Mes- 
siah was  to  reign  literally  in  Jerusalem,  and  in  Mount  Zion,  and 
before  his  ancients,  gloriously." 

Campbell  taught  that  "creeds  are  but  statements,  with  few 
exceptions,  of  doctrinal  opinion  or  speculators'  views  of  philo- 
sophical or  dogmatic  subjects,  and  tended  to  confusion,  disunion, 
and  weakness."  Orson  Pratt,  in  his  "  Divine  Authenticity  of  the 
Book  of  Mormon,"  thus  stated  the  early  Mormon  view  on  the 
same  subject:  "If  any  man  or  council,  without  the  aid  of  imme- 
diate revelation,  shall  undertake  to  decide  upon  such  subjects,  and 
prescribe  'articles  of  faith'  or  'creeds'  to  govern  the  belief  or 
views  of  others,  there  will  be  thousands  of  well-meaning  people 
who  will  not  have  confidence  in  the  productions  of  these  fallible 
men,  and,  therefore,  frame  creeds  of  their  own.  ...  In  this  way 
contentions  arise." 

Finally,  attention  may  be  directed  to  the  emphatic  declarations 
of  the  Disciples'  doctrine  of  baptism  in  the  Mormon  Bible :  — 

"  Ye  shall  go  down  and  stand  in  the  water,  and  in  my  name  shall  ye  baptize 
them  .  .  .  And  then  shall  ye  immerse  them  in  the  water,  and  come  forth  again 
out  of  the  water."  —  3  Nephi  xi.  23,  26. 

"  I  know  that  it  is  solemn  mockery  before  God  that  ye  should  baptize  little 
children.  ...  He  that  supposeth  that  little  children  need  baptism  is  in  the  gall 
of  bitterness  and  in  the  bond  of  iniquity ;  for  he  hath  neither  faith,  hope,  nor 
charity  ;  wherefore,  should  he  be  cut  off  while  in  the  thought,  he  must  go  down 
to  hell.  For  awful  is  the  wickedness  to  suppose  that  God  saveth  one  child 
because  of  baptism,  and  the  other  must  perish  because  he  hath  no  baptism." 

—  Moroni  viii.  9,  14,  15. 

There  are  but  three  conclusions  possible  from  all  this:  that 
the  Mormon  Bible  was  a  work  of  inspiration,  and  that  the  agree- 

1  "  In  a  letter  to  Dr.  Richardson,  written  in  1830,  he  [Scott]  says  the  book  of  Elias 
Smith  on  the  prophecies  is  the  only  sensible  work  on  that  subject  he  had  seen,  lie 
thinks  this  and  Crowley  on  the  Apocalypse  all  the  student  of  the  Bible  wants.  He 
strongly  commends  Smith's  book  to  the  doctor.  This  seems  to  be  the  origin  of  millen- 
nial views  among  us.  Rigdon,  who  always  caught  and  proclaimed  the  last  word  that 
fell  from  the  lips  of  Scott  or  Campbell,  seized  these  views  (about  the  millennium  and 
the  Jews)  and,  with  the  wildness  of  his  extravagant  nature,  heralded  them  everywhere." 

—  "  Early  History  of  the  Disciples'  Church  in  the  Western  Reserve,"  p.  186. 


SIDNEY    RIGDON  65 

ment  of  its  doctrines  with  Disciples'  belief  only  proves  the  correct- 
ness of  the  latter ;  that  Smith,  in  writing  his  doctrinal  views,  hit 
on  the  Disciples'  tenets  by  chance  (he  had  had  no  opportunity 
whatever  to  study  them);  or,  finally,  that  some  Disciple,  learned 
in  the  church,  supplied  these  doctrines  to  him. 

Advancing  another  step  in  the  examination  of  Rigdon's  con- 
nection with  the  scheme,  we  find  that  even  the  idea  of  a  nczv 
Bible  was  common  belief  among  the  Ohio  Disciples  who  listened 
to  Scott's  teaching.  Describing  Scott's  preaching  in  the  winter 
of  1827-1828,  Hayden  says:  — 

"  He  contended  ably  for  the  restoration  of  the  true,  original  apostolic  order 
which  would  restore  to  the  church  the  ancient  gospel  as  preached  by  the  apostles. 
The  interest  became  an  excitement ;  .  .  .  the  air  was  thick  with  rumors  of  a  '  new 
religion,1  a  'new  Bible.' " 

Next  we  may  cite  two  witnesses  to  show  that  Rigdon  had  a 
knowledge  of  Smith's  Bible  in  advance  of  its  publication.  His 
brother-in-law,  Bentley,  in  a  letter  to  Walter  Scott  dated  January 
22,  1 84 1,  said,  "I  know  that  Sidney  Rigdon  told  me  there  was 
a  book  coming  out,  the  manuscript  of  which  had  been  found 
engraved  on  gold  plates,  as  much  as  two  years  before  the 
Mormon  book  made  its  appearance  or  had  been  heard  of  by 
me."  1 

One  of  the  elders  of  the  Disciples'  church  was  Darwin 
Atwater,  a  farmer,  who  afterward  occupied  the  pulpit,  and  of 
whom  Hayden  says,  "The  uniformity  of  his  life,  his  undeviating 
devotion,  his  high  and  consistent  manliness  and  superiority  of 
judgment,  gave  him  an  undisputed  preeminence  in  the  church." 
In  a  letter  to  Hayden,  dated  April  26,  1873,  Mr.  Atwater  said  of 
Rigdon :  — 

"  For  a  few  months  before  his  professed  conversion  to  Mormonism  it  was 
noticed  that  his  wild  extravagant  propensities  had  been  more  marked.  That  he 
knew  before  the  coming  of  the  Book  of  Mormon  is  to  me  certain  from  what  he 
said  during  the  first  of  his  visits  at  my  father's,  some  years  before.  He  gave  a 
wonderful  description  of  the  mounds  and  other  antiquities  found  in  some  parts 
of  America,  and  said  that  they  must  have  been  made  by  the  aborigines.  He 
said  there  was  a  book  to  be  published  containing  an  account  of  those  things. 
He   spoke  of  these  in  his  eloquent,  enthusiastic  style,  as  being  a  thing   most 

1  Millennial  Harbinger,  1844,  p.  39.     The  Rev.  Alexander  Campbell  testified  that 
this  conversation  took  place  in  his  presence. 
F 


66  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

extraordinary.  Though  a  youth  then,  I  took  him  to  task  for  expending  so  much 
enthusiasm  on  such  a  subject  instead  of  things  of  the  Gospel.  In  all  my  inter- 
course with  him  afterward  he  never  spoke  of  antiquities,  or  of  the  wonderful 
book  that  should  give  account  of  them,  till  the  Book  of  Mormon  really  was 
published.     He  must  have  thought  I  was  not  the  man  to  reveal  that  to."  * 

Dr.  Storm  Rosa,  a  leading  physician  of  Ohio,  in  a  letter  to 
the  Rev.  John  Hall  of  Ashtabula,  written  in  1841,  said:  "  In  the 
early  part  of  the  year  1830  I  was  in  company  with  Sidney  Rigdon, 
and  rode  with  him  on  horseback  for  a  few  miles.  ...  He 
remarked  to  me  that  it  was  time  for  a  new  religion  to  spring  up  ; 
that  mankind  were  all  right  and  ready  for  it."  2 

Having  thus  established  the  identity  of  the  story  running 
through  the  Spaulding  manuscript  and  the  historical  part  of  the 
Mormon  Bible,  the  agreement  of  the  doctrinal  part  of  the  latter 
with  what  was  taught  at  the  time  by  Rigdon  and  his  fellow-workers 
in  Ohio,  and  Rigdon's  previous  knowledge  of  the  coming  book, 
we  are  brought  to  the  query,  How  did  the  Spaulding  manuscript 
become  incorporated  in  the  Mormon  Bible  ? 

It  could  have  been  so  incorporated  in  two  ways  :  either  by  com- 
ing into  the  possession  of  Rigdon  and  being  by  him  copied  and 
placed  in  Smith's  hands  for  "translation,"  with  the  theological 
parts  added  ; 3  or  by  coming  into  possession  of  Smith  in  his  wan- 
derings around  the  neighborhood  of  Hartwick,  and  being  shown 
by  him  to  Rigdon.  Every  aspect  of  this  matter  has  been  dis- 
cussed by  Mormon  and  non-Mormon  writers,  and  it  can  only  be 
said  that  definite  proof  is  lacking.  Mormon  disputants  set  forth 
that  Spaulding  moved  from  Pittsburg  to  Amity  in  18 14,  and  that 
Rigdon's  first  visit  to  Pittsburg  occurred  in  1822.  On  the  other 
hand,  evidence  is  offered  that  Rigdon  was  a  "  hanger  around  " 
Patterson's  printing-office,  where  Spaulding  offered  his  manuscript, 
before  the  year  18 16,  and  the  Rev.  John  Winter,  M.D.,  who  taught 
school  in  Pittsburg  when  Rigdon  preached  there,  and  knew  him 
well,  recalled  that  Rigdon  showed  him  a  large  manuscript  which 

1  "  Early  History  of  the  Disciples'  Church  in  the  Western  Reserve,"  p.  239. 

2  "Gleanings  by  the  Way,"  p.  315. 

3  "  Rigdon  has  not  been  in  full  fellowship  with  Smith  for  more  than  a  year.  He 
has  been  in  his  turn  cast  aside  by  Joe  to  make  room  for  some  new  dupe  or  knave  who, 
perhaps,  has  come  with  more  money.  He  has  never  been  deceived  by  Joe.  I  have  no 
doubt  that  Rigdon  was  the  originator  of  the  system,  and,  fearing  for  its  success,  put  Joe 
forward  as  a  sort  of  fool  in  the  play."  —  Letter  from  a  resident  near  Nauvoo,  quoted  in 
the  postscript  to  Caswall's  "City  of  the  Mormons"  (1843). 


SIDNEY    RIGDON  67 

he  said  a  Presbyterian  minister  named  Spaulding  had  brought  to 
the  city  for  publication.  Dr.  Winter's  daughter  wrote  to  Robert 
Patterson  on  April  5,  1881  :  "I  have  frequently  heard  my  father 
speak  of  Rigdon  having  Spaulding's  manuscript,  and  that  he  had 
gotten  it  from  the  printers  to  read  it  as  a  curiosity ;  as  such  he 
showed  it  to  father,  and  at  that  time  Rigdon  had  no  intention  of 
making  the  use  of  it  that  he  afterward  did."1  Mrs.  Ellen  E. 
Dickenson,  in  a  report  of  a  talk  with  General  and  Mrs.  Garfield 
on  the  subject  at  Mentor,  Ohio,  in  1880,  reports  Mrs.  Garfield  as 
saying  "  that  her  father  told  her  that  Rigdon  in  his  youth  lived 
in  that  neighborhood,  and  made  mysterious  journeys  to  Pitts- 
burg."2 She  also  quotes  a  statement  by  Mrs.  Garfield's  father, 
Z.  Rudolph,  "that  during  the  winter  previous  to  the  appearance 
of  the  Book  of  Mormon,  Rigdon  was  in  the  habit  of  spending 
weeks  away  from  his  home,  going  no  one  knew  where."  3  Tucker 
says  that  in  the  summer  of  1827  "  a  mysterious  stranger  appears 
at  Smith's  residence,  and  holds  private  interviews  with  the  far- 
famed  money-digger.  ...  It  was  observed  by  some  of  Smith's 
nearest  neighbors  that  his  visits  were  frequently  repeated."  Again, 
when  the  persons  interested  in  the  publication  of  the  Bible  were 
so  alarmed  by  the  abstraction  of  pages  of  the  translation  by 
Mrs.  Harris,  "  the  reappearance  of  the  mysterious  stranger  at 
Smith's  was,"  he  says,  "the  subject  of  inquiry  and  conjecture  by 
observers  from  whom  was  withheld  all  explanation  of  his  identity 
or  purpose."  * 

In  a  historical  inquiry  of  this  kind,  it  is  more  important  to  estab- 
lish the  fact  that  a  certain  thing  was  do7ie  than  to  prove  just  how 
or  when  it  was  done.  The  entire  narrative  of  the  steps  leading 
up  to  the  announcement  of  a  new  Bible,  including  Smith's  first 
introduction  to  the  use  of  a  "peek-stone  "  and  his  original  employ- 
ment of  it,  the  changes  made  in  the  original  version  of  the  an- 
nouncement to  him  of  buried  plates,  and  the  final  production  of  a 
book,  partly  historical  and  partly  theological,  shows  that  there  was 
behind  Smith  some  directing  mind,  and  the  only  one  of  his  asso- 
ciates in  the  first  few  years  of  the  church's  history  who  could  have 
done  the  work  required  was  Sidney  Rigdon. 

1  For  a  collection  of  evidence  on  this  subject,  see  Patterson's  "  Who  Wrote  the 
Mormon  Bible?" 

2  Scribner's  Magazine,  October,  1881.  3  "  New  Light  on  Mormonism,"  p.  252. 
*  "  Origin,  Rise,  and  Progress  of  Mormonism,"  pp.  28,  46. 


68  THE   STORY    OF   THE   MORMONS 

President  Fairchild,  in  his  paper  on  the  Spaulding  manuscript 
already  referred  to,  while  admitting  that  "  it  is  perhaps  impossible 
at  this  day  to  prove  or  disprove  the  Spaulding  theory,"  finds  an 
argument  against  the  assumption  that  Rigdon  supplied  the  doctri- 
nal part  of  the  new  Bible,  in  the  view  that  "  a  man  as  self-reliant 
and  smart  as  Rigdon,  with  a  superabundant  gift  of  tongue  and 
every  form  of  utterance,  would  never  have  accepted  the  servile 
task"  of  mere  interpolation;  "there  could  have  been  no  motive 
to  it."  This  only  shows  that  President  Fairchild  wrote  without 
knowledge  of  the  whole  subject,  with  ignorance  of  the  motives 
which  did  exist  for  Rigdon's  conduct,  and  without  means  of  ac- 
quainting himself  with  Rigdon's  history  during  his  association 
with  Smith.  Some  of  his  motives  we  have  already  ascertained. 
We  shall  find  that,  almost  from  the  beginning  of  their  removal  to 
Ohio,  Smith  held  him  in  a  subjection  which  can  be  explained  only 
on  the  theory  that  Rigdon,  the  prominent  churchman,  had  placed 
himself  completely  in  the  power  of  the  unprincipled  Smith,  and 
that,  instead  of  exhibiting  self-reliance,  he  accepted  insult  after 
insult  until,  just  before  Smith's  death,  he  was  practically  without 
influence  in  the  church ;  and  when  the  time  came  to  elect  Smith's 
successor,  he  was  turned  out  of  doors  by  Brigham  Young  with  the 
taunting  words,  "  Brother  Sidney  says  he  will  tell  our  secrets,  but 
I  would  say,  '  O  don't,  Brother  Sidney  !  Don't  tell  our  secrets  — 
O  don't.'  But  if  he  tells  our  secrets  we  will  tell  his.  Tit  for 
tat !  "  President  Fairchild's  argument  that  "  several  of  the  original 
leaders  of  the  fanaticism  must  have  been  adequate  to  the  task  "  of 
supplying  the  doctrinal  part  of  the  book,  only  furnishes  additional 
proof  of  his  ignorance  of  early  Mormon  history,  and  his  further 
assumption  that  "it  is  difficult  —  almost  impossible  —  to  believe 
that  the  religious  sentiments  of  the  Book  of  Mormon  were  wrought 
into  interpolation  "  brings  him  into  direct  conflict,  as  we  shall  see, 
with  Professor  Whitsitt,1  a  much  better  equipped  student  of  the 
subject. 

If  it  should  be  questioned  whether  a  man  of  Rigdon's  church 
connection  would  deliberately  plan  such  a  fraudulent  scheme  as 
the  production  of  the  Mormon  Bible,  the  inquiry  may  be  easily 
satisfied.  One  of  the  first  tasks  which  Smith  and  Rigdon  under- 
took, as  soon  as  Rigdon  openly  joined  Smith  in  New  York  State, 

1  Post,  pp.  92,  93. 


SIDNEY    RIGDON  69 

was  the  preparation  of  what  they  called  a  new  translation  of  the 
Scriptures.  This  work  was  undertaken  in  conformity  with  a  "  reve- 
lation "  to  Smith  and  Rigdon,  dated  December,  1830  (Sec.  35, 
"Doctrine  and  Covenants")  in  which  Sidney  was  told,  "And 
a  commandment  I  give  unto  thee,  that  thou  shalt  write  for  him ; 
and  the  Scriptures  shall  be  given,  even  as  they  are  in  mine  own 
bosom,  to  the  salvation  of  mine  own  elect."  The  "translating" 
was  completed  in  Ohio,  and  the  manuscript,  according  to  Smith, 
"was  sealed  up,  no  more  to  be  opened  till  it  arrived  in  Zion."  * 
This  work  was  at  first  kept  as  a  great  secret,  and  Smith  and  Rig- 
don moved  to  the  house  of  a  resident  of  Hiram  township,  Portage 
County,  Ohio,  thirty  miles  from  Kirtland,  in  September,  1831,  to 
carry  it  on ;  but  the  secret  soon  got  out.  The  preface  to  the 
edition  of  the  book  published  at  Piano,  Illinois,  in  1867,  under 
the  title,  "  The  Holy  Scriptures  translated  and  corrected  by  the 
Spirit  of  Revelation,  by  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  the  Seer,"  says  that 
the  manuscript  remained  in  the  hands  of  the  prophet's  widow  from 
the  time  of  his  death  until  1866,  when  it  was  delivered  to  a  com- 
mittee of  the  Reorganized  Mormon  conference  for  publication. 
Some  of  its  chapters  were  known  to  Mormon  readers  earlier, 
since  Corrill  gives  the  twenty-fourth  chapter  of  Matthew  in  his 
historical  sketch,  which  was  dated  1839. 

The  professed  object  of  the  translation  was  to  restore  the 
Scriptures  to  their  original  purity  and  beauty,  the  Mormon  Bible 
declaring  that  "  many  plain  and  precious  parts  "  had  been  taken 
from  them.  The  real  object,  however,  was  to  add  to  the  sacred 
writings  a  prediction  of  Joseph  Smith's  coming  as  a  prophet,  which 
would  increase  his  authority  and  support  the  pretensions  of  the  new 
Bible.  That  this  was  Rigdon's  scheme  is  apparent  from  the  fact 
that  it  was  announced  as  soon  as  he  visited  Smith,  and  was  carried 
on  under  his  direction,  and  that  the  manuscript  translation  was  all 
in  his  handwriting.2 

Extended  parts  of  the  translation  do  not  differ  at  all  from  the 
King  James  version,  and  many  of  the  changes  are  verbal  and 
inconsequential.  Rigdon's  object  appears  in  the  changes  made 
in  the  fiftieth  chapter  of  Genesis,  and  the  twenty-ninth  chapter  of 
Isaiah.  In  the  King  James  version  the  fiftieth  chapter  of  Genesis 
contains  twenty-six  verses,  and  ends  with  the  words,  "  So  Joseph 

1  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XIV,  p.  361.  2  Wyl's  "  Mormon  Portraits,"  p.  124. 


70  THE  STORY  OF  THE  MORMONS 

died,  being  an  hundred  and  ten  years  old;  and  they  embalmed  him, 
and  he  was  put  in  a  coffin  in  Eygpt."  In  the  Smith-Rigdon  version 
this  chapter  contains  thirty-eight  verses,  the  addition  representing 
Joseph  as  telling  his  brethren  that  a  branch  of  his  people  shall  be 
carried  into  a  far  country  and  that  a  seer  shall  be  given  to  them, 
"  and  that  seer  will  I  bless,  and  they  that  seek  to  destroy  him  shall 
be  confounded  ;  for  this  promise  I  give  unto  you  ;  for  I  will  remem- 
ber you  from  generation  to  generation ;  and  his  name  shall  be  called 
Joseph.  And  he  shall  have  judgment,  and  shall  write  the  word  of 
the  Lord." 

The  twenty-ninth  chapter  of  Isaiah  is  similarly  expanded  from 
twenty-four  short  to  thirty-two  long  verses.  Verses  eleven  and 
twelve  of  the  King  James  version  read:  — 

"  And  the  vision  of  all  is  become  unto  you  as  the  words  of  a  book  that  is 
sealed,  which  men  deliver  to  one  that  is  learned,  saying,  Read  this,  I  pray  thee : 
and  he  saith,  I  cannot ;  for  it  is  sealed  :  " 

"  And  the  book  is  delivered  to  him  that  is  not  learned,  saying,  Read  this, 
I  pray  thee :  and  he  saith,  I  am  not  learned." 

The  Smith-Rigdon  version  expands  this  as  follows :  — 

"ii.  And  it  shall  come  to  pass,  that  the  Lord  God  shall  bring  forth  unto 
you  the  words  of  a  book;  and  they  shall  be  the  words  of  them  which  have 
slumbered. 

"  12.  And  behold,  the  book  shall  be  sealed  ;  and  in  the  book  shall  be  a  reve- 
lation from  God,  from  the  beginning  of  the  world  to  the  ending  thereof. 

"  13.  Wherefore,  because  of  the  things  which  are  sealed  up,  the  things  which 
are  sealed  shall  not  be  delivered  in  the  day  of  the  wickedness  and  abominations 
of  the  people.     Wherefore,  the  book  shall  be  kept  from  them. 

"  14.  But  the  book  shall  be  delivered  unto  a  man,  and  he  shall  deliver  the 
words  of  the  book,  which  are  the  words  of  those  who  have  slumbered  in  the  dust ; 
and  he  shall  deliver  these  words  unto  another,  but  the  words  that  are  sealed  he 
shall  not  deliver,  neither  shall  he  deliver  the  book. 

"15.  For  the  book  shall  be  sealed  by  the  power  of  God,  and  the  revelation 
which  was  sealed  shall  be  kept  in  the  book  until  the  own  due  time  of  the  Lord, 
that  they  may  come  forth  ;  for,  behold,  they  reveal  all  things  from  the  foundation 
of  the  world  unto  the  end  thereof.11 

No  one  will  question  that  a  Rigdon  who  would  palm  off  such  a 
fraudulent  work  as  this  upon  the  men  who  looked  to  him  as  a  reli- 
gious teacher  would  hesitate  to  suggest  to  Smith  the  scheme  for 
a  new  Bible.  During  the  work  of  translation,  as  we  learn  from 
Smith's  autobiography,  the  translators  saw  a  wonderful  vision,  in 
which  they  "  beheld  the  glory  of  the  Son  on  the  right  hand  of  the 


SIDNEY   RIGDON  7 1 

Father,"  and  holy  angels,  and  the  glory  of  the  worlds,  terrestrial 
and  celestial.  Soon  after  this  they  received  an  explanation  from 
heaven  of  some  obscure  texts  in  Revelation.  Thus,  the  sea  of 
glass  (iv.  6)  "is  the  earth  in  its  sanctified,  immortal,  and  eternal 
state  " ;  by  the  little  book  which  was  eaten  by  John  (chapter  x) 
"  we  are  to  understand  that  it  was  a  mission  and  an  ordinance  for 
him  to  gather  the  tribes  of  Israel." 

It  may  be  added  that  this  translation  is  discarded  by  the  modern 
Mormon  church  in  Utah.  The  Deseret  Evening  Nczvs,  the  church 
organ  at  Salt  Lake  City,  said  on  February  21,  1900:  — 

"  The  translation  of  the  Bible,  referred  to  by  our  correspondents,  has  not 
been  adopted  by  this  church  as  authoritative.  It  is  understood  that  the  Prophet 
Joseph  intended  before  its  publication  to  subject  the  manuscript  to  an  entire  ex- 
amination, for  such  revision  as  might  be  deemed  necessary.  Be  that  as  it  may, 
the  work  has  not  been  published  under  the  auspices  of  this  church,  and  is,  there- 
fore, not  held  out  as  a  guide.  For  the  present,  the  version  of  the  scriptures  com- 
monly known  as  King  James's  translation  is  used,  and  the  living  oracles  are  the 
expounders  of  the  written  word." 

We  may  anticipate  the  course  of  our  narrative  in  order  to  show 
how  much  confirmation  of  Rigdon's  connection  with  the  whole 
Mormon  scheme  is  furnished  by  the  circumstances  attending  the 
first  open  announcement  of  his  acceptance  of  the  Mormon  litera- 
ture and  faith.  We  are  first  introduced  to  Parley  P.  Pratt,  some- 
time tin  pedler,  and  a  lay  preacher  to  rural  congregations  in  Ohio 
when  occasion  offered.  Pratt  in  his  autobiography  tells  of  the  joy 
with  which  he  heard  Rigdon  preach,  at  his  home  in  Ohio,  doc- 
trines of  repentance  and  baptism  which  were  the  "ancient  gospel  " 
that  he  (Pratt)  had  "  discovered  years  before,  but  could  find  no 
one  to  minister  in  "  ;  of  a  society  for  worship  which  he  and  others 
organized ;  of  his  decision,  acting  under  the  influence  of  the 
Gospel  and  prophecies  "as  they  had  been  opened  to  him,"  to 
abandon  the  home  he  had  built  up,  and  to  set  out  on  a  mission 
"for  the  Gospel's  sake"  ;  and  of  a  trip  to  New  York  State,  where 
he  was  shown  the  Mormon  Bible.  "As  I  read,"  he  says,  "the 
spirit  of  the  Lord  was  upon  me,  and  I  knew  and  comprehended 
that  the  book  was  true." 

Pratt  was  at  once  commissioned,  "  by  revelation  and  the  laying 
on  of  hands,"  to  preach  the  new  Gospel,  and  was  sent,  also  by 
"  revelation "  (Sec.  32,   "  Doctrine  and  Covenants "),  along  with 


72  THE  STORY  OF  THE  MORMONS 

Cowdery,  Z.  Peterson,  and  Peter  Whitmer,  Jr.,  "  into  the  wilder- 
ness among  the  Lamanites."  Pratt  and  Cowdery  went  direct  to 
Rigdon's  house  in  Mentor,  where  they  stayed  a  week.  Pratt's 
own  account  says :  "  We  called  on  Mr.  Rigdon,  my  former  friend 
and  instructor  in  the  Reformed  Baptist  Society.  He  received  us 
cordially,  and  entertained  us  with  hospitality."  2 

In  Smith's  autobiography  it  is  stated  that  Rigdon's  visitors 
presented  the  Mormon  Bible  to  him  as  a  revelation  from  God, 
and  what  followed  is  thus  described  :  — 

"  This  being  the  first  time  he  had  ever  heard  of  or  seen  the  Book  of  Mormon, 
he  felt  very  much  prejudiced  at  the  assertion,  and  replied  that  '  he  had  one  Bible 
which  he  believed  was  a  revelation  from  God,  and  with  which  he  pretended  to 
have  some  acquaintance ;  but  with  respect  to  the  book  they  had  presented  him, 
he  must  say  he  had  considerable  doubt.'1  Upon  which  they  expressed  a  desire  to 
investigate  the  subject  and  argue  the  matter  ;  but  he  replied,  '  No,  young  gentle- 
men, you  must  not  argue  with  me  on  the  subject.  But  I  will  read  your  book,  and 
see  what  claim  it  has  upon  my  faith,  and  will  endeavor  to  ascertain  whether  it  be 
a  revelation  from  God  or  not.'  After  some  further  conversation  on  the  subject, 
they  expressed  a  desire  to  lay  the  subject  before  the  people,  and  requested  the 
privilege  of  preaching  in  Elder  Rigdon's  church,  to  which  he  readily  consented. 
The  appointment  was  accordingly  published,  and  a  large  and  respectable  congre- 
gation assembled.  Oliver  Cowdery  and  Parley  P.  Pratt  severally  addressed  the 
meeting.  At  the  conclusion  Elder  Rigdon  arose  and  stated  to  the  congregation 
that  the  information  they  that  evening  had  received  was  of  an  extraordinary 
character,  and  certainly  demanded  their  most  serious  consideration  ;  and,  as  the 
apostle  advised  his  brethren  'to  prove  all  things  and  hold  fast  that  which  is 
good,'1  so  he  would  exhort  his  brethren  to  do  likewise,  and  give  the  matter  a  care- 
ful investigation,  and  not  turn  against  it,  without  being  fully  convinced  of  its 
being  an  imposition,  lest  they  should  possibly  resist  the  truth."  2 

Accepting  this  as  a  correct  report  of  what  occurred  (and  we 
may  consider  it  from  Rigdon's  pen),  we  find  a  clergyman  who 
was  a  fellow-worker  with  men  like  Campbell  and  Scott  expressing 
only  "  considerable  doubt "  of  the  inspiration  of  a  book  presented 
to  him  as  a  new  Bible,  "  readily  consenting  "  to  the  use  of  his 
church  by  the  sponsors  for  this  book,  and,  at  the  close  of  their 
arguments,  warning  his  people  against  rejecting  it  too  readily 
"  lest  they  resist  the  truth  "  !  Unless  all  these  are  misstatements, 
there  seems  to  be  little  necessity  of  further  proof  that  Rigdon  was 
prepared  in  advance  for  the  reception  of  the  Mormon  Bible. 

1  "Autobiography  of  P.  P.  Pratt,"  p.  49. 

2  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XIV,  p.  47. 


SIDNEY    RIGDON  73 

After  this  came  the  announcement  of  the  conversion  and 
baptism  by  the  Mormon  missionaries  of  a  "family"  of  seventeen 
persons  living  in  some  sort  of  a  "  community  "  system,  between 
Mentor  and  Kirtland.  Rigdon,  who  had  merely  explained  to  his 
neighbors  that  his  visitors  were  "on  a  curious  mission,"  expressed 
disapproval  of  this  at  first,  and  took  Cowdery  to  task  for  asserting 
that  his  own  conversion  to  the  new  belief  was  due  to  a  visit  from 
an  angel.  But,  two  days  later,  Rigdon  himself  received  an 
angel's  visit,  and  the  next  Sunday,  with  his  wife,  was  baptized 
into  the  new  faith. 

Rigdon,  of  course,  had  to  answer  many  inquiries  on  his 
return  to  Ohio  from  a  visit  to  Smith  which  soon  followed  his 
conversion,  but  his  policy  was  indignant  reticence  whenever 
pressed  to  any  decisive  point.  To  an  old  acquaintance  who,  after 
talking  the  matter  over  with  him  at  his  house,  remarked  that  the 
Koran  of  Mohammed  stood  on  as  good  evidence  as  the  Bible  of 
Smith,  Rigdon  replied  :  "  Sir,  you  have  insulted  me  in  my  own 
house.  I  command  silence.  If  people  come  to  see  us  and  can- 
not treat  us  civilly,  they  can  walk  out  of  the  door  as  soon  as  they 
please."  *  Thomas  Campbell  sent  a  long  letter  to  Rigdon  under 
date  of  February  4,  183 1,  in  which  he  addressed  him  as  "  for  many 
years  not  only  a  courteous  and  benevolent  friend,  but  a  beloved 
brother  and  fellow-laborer  in  the  Gospel  —  but  alas  !  how  changed, 
how  fallen."  Accepting  a  recent  offer  of  Rigdon  in  one  of  his 
sermons  to  give  his  reasons  for  his  new  belief,  Mr.  Campbell 
offered  to  meet  him  in  public  discussion,  even  outlining  the  argu- 
ment he  would  offer,  under  nine  headings,  that  Rigdon  might  be 
prepared  to  refute  it,  proposing  to  take  his  stand  on  the  suffi- 
ciency of  the  Holy  Scriptures,  Smith's  bad  character,  the  absurd- 
ities of  the  Mormon  Bible  and  of  the  alleged  miraculous  "gifts," 
and  the  objections  to  the  "common  property"  plan  and  the  re- 
baptizing  of  believers.  Rigdon,  after  glancing  over  a  few  lines 
of  this  letter,  threw  it  into  the  fire  unanswered.2 

1  "Mormonism  Unveiled,"  p.  112.  2  Ibid.,  p.  1 16-123. 


CHAPTER   IX 

"THE   EVERLASTING   GOSPEL" 

Having  presented  the  evidence  which  shows  that  the  historical 
part  of  the  Mormon  Bible  was  supplied  by  the  Spaulding  manu- 
script, we  may  now  pay  attention  to  other  evidence,  which  indicates 
that  the  entire  conception  of  a  revelation  of  golden  plates  by  an 
angel  was  not  even  original,  and  also  that  its  suggestor  was  Rigdon. 
This  is  a  subject  which  has  been  overlooked  by  investigators  of 
the  Mormon  Bible. 

That  the  idea  of  the  revelation  as  described  by  Smith  in  his 
autobiography  was  not  original  is  shown  by  the  fact  that  a  similar 
divine  message,  engraved  on  plates,  was  announced  to  have  been 
received  from  an  angel  nearly  six  hundred  years  before  the  alleged 
visit  of  an  angel  to  Smith.  These  original  plates  were  described 
as  of  copper,  and  the  recipient  was  a  monk  named  Cyril,  from 
whom  their  contents  passed  into  the  possession  of  the  Abbot  Joa- 
chim, whose  "  Everlasting  Gospel,"  founded  thereon,  was  offered 
to  the  church  as  supplanting  the  New  Testament,  just  as  the  New 
Testament  had  supplanted  the  Old,  and  caused  so  serious  a  schism 
that  Pope  Alexander  IV  took  the  severest  measures  against  it.1 

The  evidence  that  the  history  of  the  "  Everlasting  Gospel "  of 
the  thirteenth  century  supplied  the  idea  of  the  Mormon  Bible  lies 
not  only  in  the  resemblance  between  the  celestial  announcement  of 
both,  but  in  the  fact  that  both  were  declared  to  have  the  same  im- 
portant purport  —  as  a  forerunner  of  the  end  of  the  world  —  and 
that  the  name  "Everlasting  Gospel"  was  adopted  and  constantly 
used  in  connection  with  their  message  by  the  original  leaders  in 
the  Mormon  church. 

1  Draper's  "  Intellectual  Development  of  Europe,"  Vol.  II,  Chap.  III.  For  an 
exhaustive  essay  on  the  "  Everlasting  Gospel,"  by  Renan,  see  Revue  des  Deux  Mondes, 
June,  1866.  For  John  of  Parma's  part  in  the  Gospel,  see  "  Histoire  Litteraire  de  la 
France"  (1842),  Vol.  XX,  p.  24. 

74 


"THE   EVERLASTING    GOSPEL"  75 

If  it  is  asked,  How  could  Rigdon  become  acquainted  with  the 
story  of  the  original  "  Everlasting  Gospel,"  the  answer  is  that  it 
was  just  such  subjects  that  would  most  attract  his  attention,  and 
that  his  studies  had  led  him  into  directions  where  the  story  of 
Cyril's  plates  would  probably  have  been  mentioned.  He  was  a 
student  of  every  subject  out  of  which  he  could  evolve  a  sect,  from 
the  time  of  his  Pittsburg  pastorate.  Hepworth  Dixon  said,  "  He 
knew  the  writings  of  Maham,  Gates,  and  Boyle,  writings  in  which 
love  and  marriage  are  considered  in  relation  to  Gospel  liberty  and 
the  future  life." *  H.  H.  Bancroft,  noting  his  appointment  as  Pro- 
fessor of  Church  History  in  Nauvoo  University,  speaks  of  him  as 
"versed  in  history,  belles-lettres,  and  oratory."2  Mrs.  James  A. 
Garfield  told  Mrs.  Dickenson  that  Rigdon  taught  her  father  Latin 
and  Greek.3  David  Whitmer,  who  was  so  intimately  acquainted 
with  the  early  history  of  the  church,  testified  :  "  Rigdon  was  a  thor-j 
ough  biblical  scholar,  a  man  of  fine  education  and  a  powerful  ora- 1 
tor."4  A  writer,  describing  Rigdon  while  the  church  was  at  Nau- 
voo, said,  "  There  is  no  divine  in  the  West  more  learned  in  biblical 
literature  and  the  history  of  the  world  than  he."5  All  this  indi- 
cates that  a  knowledge  of  the  earlier  "  Everlasting  Gospel  "  was 
easily  within  Rigdon's  reach.  We  may  even  surmise  the  exact 
source  of  this  knowledge.  Mosheim's  "Ecclesiastical  History, 
Ancient  and  Modern"  was  at  his  disposal.  Editions  of  it  had  ap- 
peared in  London  in  1765,  1768,  1774,  1782,  1790,  1806,  1810,  and 
1826,  and  among  the  abridgments  was  one  published  in  Philadel- 
phia in  18 1 2.     In  this  work  he  could  have  read  as  follows  :  — 

"  About  the  commencement  of  this  [the  thirteenth]  century  there  were  handed 
about  in  Italy  several  pretended  prophecies  of  the  famous  Joachim,  abbot  of  Sora 
in  Calabria,  whom  the  multitude  revered  as  a  person  divinely  inspired,  and  equal 
to  the  most  illustrious  prophets  of  ancient  times.  The  greatest  part  of  these 
predictions  were  contained  in  a  certain  book  entitled,  'The  Everlasting  Gospel,' 
and  which  was  also  commonly  called  the  Book  of  Joachim.  This  Joachim,  whether 
a  real  or  fictitious  person  we  shall  not  pretend  to  determine,  among  many  other 
future  events,  foretold  the  destruction  of  the  Church  of  Rome,  whose  corruptions 
he  censured  with  the  greatest  severity,  and  the  promulgation  of  a  new  and  more 
perfect  gospel  in  the  age  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  by  a  set  of  poor  and  austere  minis- 
ters, whom  God  was  to  raise  up  and  employ  for  that  purpose." 

1  "  Spiritual  Wives,"  p.  62.  4  "  Address  to  All  Believers  in  Christ,"  p.  35. 

2  "  Utah,"  p.  146.  5  Letter  in  the  New  York  Herald. 

3  Scribner's  Magazine,  October,  1881. 


76  THE  STORY  OF  THE  MORMONS 

Here  is  a  perfect  outline  of  the  scheme  presented  by  the  origi- 
nal Mormons,  with  Joseph  as  the  divinely  inspired  prophet,  and  an 
"  Everlasting  Gospel,"  the  gift  of  an  angel,  promulgated  by  poor 
men  like  the  travelling  Mormon  elders. 

The  original  suggestion  of  an  "  Everlasting  Gospel "  is  found 
in  Revelation  xiv.  6  and  7  :  — 

"  And  I  saw  another  angel  fly  in  the  midst  of  heaven,  having  the  everlasting 
gospel  to  preach  unto  them  that  dwell  on  the  earth,  and  to  every  nation,  and  kin- 
dred, and  tongue,  and  people, 

"  Saying  with  a  loud  voice,  Fear  God,  and  give  glory  to  him ;  for  the  hour 
of  his  judgment  is  come :  and  worship  him  that  made  heaven,  and  earth,  and 
the  sea,  and  the  fountains  of  water.1' 1 

This  was  the  angel  of  Cyril ;  this  the  announcement  of  those 
"  latter  days"  from  which  the  Mormon  church,  on  Rigdon's  motion, 
soon  took  its  name. 

That  Rigdon's  attention  had  been  attracted  to  an  "  Everlasting 
Gospel"  is  proved  by  the  constant  references  made  to  it  in  writings 
of  which  he  had  at  least  the  supervision,  from  the  very  beginning 
of  the  church.  Thus,  when  he  preached  his  first  sermon  before  a 
Mormon  audience  —  on  the  occasion  of  his  visit  to  Smith  at  Pal- 
myra in  1830 — he  took  as  his  text  a  part  of  the  version  of  Revela- 
tion xiv.  which  he  had  put  into  the  Mormon  Bible  ( 1  Nephi  xiii.  40), 
and  in  his  sermon,  as  reported  by  Tucker,  who  heard  it,  holding  the 
Scriptures  in  one  hand  and  the  Mormon  Bible  in  the  other,  he  said, 
"  that  they  were  inseparably  necessary  to  complete  the  everlast- 
ing gospel  of  the  Saviour  Jesus  Christ."  In  the  account,  in  Smith's 
autobiography,  of  the  first  description  of  the  buried  book  given  to 
Smith  by  the  angel,  its  two  features  are  named  separately,  first, 
"  an  account  of  the  former  inhabitants  of  this  continent,"  and  then 
"the  fulness  of  the  Everlasting  Gospel."  That  Rigdon  never  lost 
sight  of  the  importance,  in  his  view,  of  an  "  Everlasting  Gospel " 
may  be  seen  from  the  following  quotation  from  one  of  his  articles 
in  his  Pittsburg  organ,  the  Messenger  and  Advocate,  of  June  15, 

1  "  Bisping  (after  Gerlach)  takes  Rev.  xiv.  6-1 1  to  foretell  that  three  great  events 
at  the  end  of  the  last  world-week  are  immediately  to  precede  Christ's  second  advent : 

(1)  the  announcement  of  the  'eternal'  Gospel  to  the  whole  world  (Matt.  xxiv.  14); 

(2)  the  Fall  of  Babylon;  (3)  a  warning  to  all  who  worship  the  beast.  .  .  .  Burger  says 
this  vision  can  denote  nothing  but  a  last  admonition  and  summons  to  conversion  shortly 
before  the  end."  — Note  in  "  Commentary  by  Bishops  and  Other  Clergy  of  the  Anglican 
Church." 


"THE   EVERLASTING   GOSPEL"  J  J 

1845,  after  his  expulsion  from  Nauvoo :  "It  is  a  strict  observance 
of  the  principles  of  the  fulness  of  the  Everlasting  Gospel  of  Jesus 
Christ,  as  contained  in  the  Bible,  Book  of  Mormon,  and  Book  of 
Covenants,  which  alone  will  insure  a  man  an  inheritance  in  the 
kingdom  of  our  God." 

The  importance  attached  to  the  "  Everlasting  Gospel "  by  the 
founders  of  the  church  is  seen  further  in  the  references  to  it 
in  the  "  Book  of  Doctrine  and  Covenants,"  which  it  is  not  nec- 
essary to  cite,1  and  further  in  a  pamphlet  by  Elder  Moses  of  New 
York  (1842),  entitled  "  A  Treatise  on  the  Fulness  of  the  Everlast- 
ing Gospel,  setting  forth  its  First  Principles,  Promises,  and  Bless- 
ings," in  which  he  argued  that  the  appearance  of  the  angel  to  Smith 
was  in  direct  line  with  the  Scriptural  teaching,  and  that  the  last 
days  were  near. 

1  For  examples  see  Sec.  68,  I;  Sec.  101,  22;  Sec.  124,  88. 


CHAPTER  X 

THE  WITNESSES  TO  THE  PLATES 

In  his  accounts  to  his  neighbors  of  the  revelation  to  him  of  the 
golden  plates  on  which  the  "record"  was  written,  Smith  always 
declared  that  no  person  but  him  could  look  on  those  plates  and 
live.  But  when  the  printed  book  came  out,  it,  like  all  subsequent 
editions  to  this  day,  was  preceded  by  the  following  "  testimonies  " :  — 

"The  Testimony  of  Three  Witnesses 

"  Be  it  known  unto  all  nations,  kindreds,  tongues,  and  people  unto  whom  this 
work  shall  come,  that  we  through  the  grace  of  God  the  Father,  and  our  Lord 
Jesus  Christ,  have  seen  the  plates  which  contain  this  record,  which  is  a  record  of 
the  people  of  Nephi,  and  also  of  the  Lamanites,  their  brethren,  and  also  the 
people  of  Jared,  who  came  from  the  tower  of  which  hath  been  spoken  ;  and  we 
also  know  that  they  have  been  translated  by  the  gift  and  power  of  God,  for  his 
voice  hath  declared  it  unto  us  ;  wherefore  we  know  of  a  surety  that  the  work  is 
true.  And  we  also  testify  that  we  have  seen  the  engravings  which  are  upon  the 
plates  ;  and  they  have  been  shewn  unto  us  by  the  power  of  God,  and  not  of  man. 
And  we  declare  with  words  of  soberness,  that  an  angel  of  God  came  down  from 
heaven,  and  he  brought  and  laid  before  our  eyes,  that  we  beheld  and  saw  the 
plates,  and  the  engravings  thereon  ;  and  we  know  that  it  is  by  the  grace  of  God 
the  Father,  and  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  that  we  beheld  and  bear  record  that  these 
things  are  true  ;  and  it  is  marvellous  in  our  eyes,  nevertheless  the  voice  of  the 
Lord  commanded  us  that  we  should  bear  record  of  it  ;  wherefore,  to  be  obedient 
unto  the  commandments  of  God,  we  bear  testimony  of  these  things.  And  we 
know  that  if  we  are  faithful  in  Christ,  we  shall  rid  our  garments  of  the  blood  of 
all  men,  and  be  found  spotless  before  the  judgment-seat  of  Christ,  and  shall  dwell 
with  him  eternally  in  the  heavens.  And  the  honour  be  to  the  Father,  and  to  the 
Son,  and  to  the  Holy  Ghost,  which  is  one  God.     Amen. 

"Oliver  Cowdery, 
David  Whitmer, 
Martin  Harris. 

"And  also  the  Testimony  of  the  Eight  Witnesses 

"  Be  it  known  unto  all  nations,  kindreds,  tongues,  and  people  unto  whom  this 
work  shall  come,  that  Joseph  Smith,  Jun.,  the  translator  of  this  work,  has  shewn 
unto  us  the  plates  of  which  hath  been  spoken,  which  have  the  appearance  of 

78 


THE  WITNESSES   TO   THE   PLATES  79 

gold  ;  and  as  many  of  the  leaves  as  the  said  Smith  has  translated  we  did  handle 
with  our  hands ;  and  we  also  saw  the  engravings  thereon,  all  of  which  has  the 
appearance  of  ancient  work,  and  of  curious  workmanship.  And  this  we  bear 
record  with  words  of  soberness,  that  the  said  Smith  has  shewn  unto  us,  for  we 
have  seen  and  hefted,  and  know  of  a  surety  that  the  said  Smith  has  got  the  plates 
of  which  we  have  spoken.  And  we  give  our  names  unto  the  world,  to  witness 
unto  the  world  that  which  we  have  seen  ;  and  we  lie  not,  God  bearing  witness 

of  it. 

"Christian  Whitmer,  Hiram  Page, 

Jacob  Whitmer,  Joseph   Smith,  Sen., 

Peter  Whitmer,  Jun.,         Hyrum  Smith, 

John  Whitmer,  Samuel  H.  Smith." 

In  judging  of  the  value  of  this  testimony,  we  may  first  inquire, 
what  the  prophet  has  to  say  about  it,  and  may  then  look  into  the 
character  and  qualification  of  the  witnesses. 

We  find  a  sufficiently  full  explanation  of  Testimony  No.  i  in 
Smith's  autobiography  and  in  his  "  revelations."  Nothing  could 
be  more  natural  than  that  such  men  as  the  prophet  was  dealing 
with  should  demand  a  sight  of  any  plates  from  which  he  might 
be  translating.  Others  besides  Harris  made  such  a  demand,  and 
Smith  repeated  the  warning  that  to  look  on  them  was  death. 
This  might  satisfy  members  of  his  own  family,  but  it  did  not 
quiet  his  scribes,  and  he  tells  us  that  Cowdery,  David  Whitmer, 
and  Harris  "teased  me  so  much"  (these  are  his  own  words)  that 
he  gave  out  a  "  revelation  "  in  March,  1829  (Sec.  5,  "  Doctrine  and 
Covenants  "),  in  which  the  Lord  was  represented  as  saying  that  the 
prophet  had  no  power  over  the  plates  except  as  He  granted  it,  but 
that  to  his  testimony  would  be  added  "  the  testimony  of  three  of 
my  servants,  whom  I  shall  call  and  ordain,  unto  whom  I  will  show 
these  things,"  adding,  "  and  to  none  else  will  I  grant  this  power, 
to  receive  this  same  testimony  among  this  generation."  The  Lord 
was  distrustful  of  Harris,  and  commanded  him  not  to  be  talkative 
on  the  subject,  but  to  say  nothing  about  it  except,  "I  have  seen 
them,  and  they  have  been  shown  unto  me  by  the  power  of  God." 

Smith's  own  account  of  the  showing  of  the  plates  to  these  three 
witnesses  is  so  luminous  that  it  may  be  quoted.  After  going  out 
into  the  woods,  they  had  to  stand  Harris  off  by  himself  because  of 
his  evil  influence.     Then  :  — 

"  We  knelt  down  again,  and  had  not  been  many  minutes  engaged  in  prayer 
when  presently  we  beheld  a  light  above  us  in  the  air  of  exceeding  brightness ; 


80  THE  STORY  OF  THE  MORMONS 

and  behold  an  angel  stood  before  us.  In  his  hands  he  held  the  plates  which  we 
had  been  praying  for  these  to  have  a  view  of;  he  turned  over  the  leaves  one  by 
one,  so  that  we  could  see  them  and  discover  the  engravings  thereon  distinctly. 
He  then  addressed  himself  to  David  Whitmer  and  said,  '  David,  blessed  is  the 
Lord  and  he  that  keeps  his  commandments ';  when  immediately  afterward  we 
heard  a  voice  from  out  of  the  bright  light  above  us  saying,  '  These  plates  have 
been  revealed  by  the  power  of  God,  and  they  have  been  translated  by  the  power 
of  God.  The  translation  of  them  is  correct,  and  I  command  you  to  bear  record 
of  what  you  now  see  and  hear.' 

"  I  now  left  David  and  Oliver,  and  went  into  pursuit  of  Martin  Harris,  whom 
I  found  at  a  considerable  distance,  fervently  engaged  in  prayer.  He  soon  told 
me,  however,  that  he  had  not  yet  prevailed  with  the  Lord,  and  earnestly  requested 
me  to  join  him  in  prayer,  that  he  might  also  realize  the  same  blessings  which  we 
had  just  received.  We  accordingly  joined  in  prayer,  and  immediately  obtained 
our  desires ;  for  before  we  had  yet  finished,  the  same  vision  was  opened  to  our 
view,  at  least  it  was  again  to  vie  [Joe  thus  refuses  to  vouch  for  Harris's  declara- 
tion on  the  subject]  ;  and  I  once  more  beheld  and  heard  the  same  things  ;  whilst, 
at  the  same  moment,  Martin  Harris  cried  out,  apparently  in  ecstasy  of  joy,  '  'Tis 
enough,  mine  eyes  hath  beheld,1  and,  jumping  up,  he  shouted  '  Hosannah,1 
blessing  God,  and  otherwise  rejoiced  exceedingly."1 

If  this  story  taxes  the  credulity  of  the  reader,  his  doubts  about 
the  value  of  this  "testimony"  will  increase  when  he  traces  the 
history  of  the  three  witnesses.  Surely,  if  any  three  men  in  the 
church  should  remain  steadfast,  mighty  pillars  of  support  for 
the  prophet  in  his  future  troubles,  it  should  be  these  chosen  wit- 
nesses to  the  actual  existence  of  the  golden  plates.  Yet  every  one 
of  them  became  an  apostate,  and  every  one  of  them  was  loaded 
with  all  the  opprobrium  that  the  church  could  pile  upon  him. 

Cowdery's  reputation  was  locally  bad  at  the  time.  "I  was 
personally  acquainted  with  Oliver  Cowdery,"  said  Danforth 
Booth,  an  old  resident  of  Palmyra,  in  1880.  "He  was  a  petti- 
fogger; their  (the  Smiths')  cat-paw  to  do  their  dirty  work."2 
Smith's  trouble  with  him,  which  began  during  the  work  of  trans- 
lating, continued,  and  Smith  found  it  necessary  to  say  openly  in  a 
"revelation"  given  out  in  Ohio  in  1831  (Sec.  69),  when  prepara- 
tions were  making  for  a  trip  of  some  of  the  brethren  to  Missouri, 
"  It  is  not  wisdom  in  me  that  he  should  be  intrusted  with  the 
commandments  and  the  monies  which  he  shall  carry  unto  the  land 
of  Zion,  except  one  go  with  him  who  will  be  true  and  faithful." 

1  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XIV,  Supt.,  p.  19. 

2  Among  affidavits  on  file  in  the  county  clerk's  office  at  Canandaigua,  New  York. 


THE    WITNESSES   TO    THE    PLATES  8 1 

By  the  time  Smith  took  his  final  departure  to  Missouri, 
Cowdery  and  David  and  John  Whitmer  had  lost  caste  entirely, 
and  in  June,  1838,  they  fled  to  escape  the  Danites  at  Far  West. 
The  letter  of  warning  addressed  to  them  and  signed  by  more  than 
eighty  Mormons,  giving  them  three  days  in  which  to  depart, 
contained  the  following  accusations  :  — 

"After  Oliver  Cowdery  had  been  taken  by  a  state  warrant  for  stealing, 
and  the  stolen  property  found  in  the  house  of  William  W.  Phelps;  in  which 
nefarious  transaction  John  Whitmer  had  also  participated.  Oliver  Cowdery 
stole  the  property,  conveyed  it  to  John  Whitmer,  and  John  Whitmer  to  William 
W.  Phelps  ;  and  then  the  officers  of  law  found  it.  While  in  the  hands  of  an  officer, 
and  under  an  arrest  for  this  vile  transaction,  and,  if  possible,  to  hide  your  shame 
from  the  world  like  criminals  (which,  indeed,  you  were),  you  appealed  to  our 
beloved  brethren,  President  Joseph  Smith  Jr.  and  Sidney  Rigdon,  men  whose 
characters  you  had  endeavored  to  destroy  by  every  artifice  you  could  invent,  not 
even  the  basest  lying  excepted.  ... 

"  The  Saints  in  Kirtland  having  elected  Oliver  Cowdery  to  a  justice  of  the 
peace,  he  used  the  power  of  that  office  to  take  their  most  sacred  rights  from  them, 
and  that  contrary  to  law.  He  supported  a  parcel  of  blacklegs,  and  in  disturbing 
the  worship  of  the  Saints ;  and  when  the  men  whom  the  church  had  chosen  to 
preside  over  their  meetings  endeavored  to  put  the  house  to  order,  he  helped  (and 
by  the  authority  of  his  justice's  office  too)  these  wretches  to  continue  their  con- 
fusion ;  and  threatened  the  church  with  a  prosecution  for  trying  to  put  them  out 
of  the  house ;  and  issued  writs  against  the  Saints  for  endeavoring  to  sustain  their 
rights ;  and  bound  themselves  under  heavy  bonds  to  appear  before  his  honor ; 
and  required  bonds  which  were  both  inhuman  and  unlawful ;  and  one  of  these 
was  the  venerable  father,  who  had  been  appointed  by  the  church  to  preside  —  a 
man  of  upwards  of  seventy  years  of  age,  and  notorious  for  his  peaceable  habits. 

"Oliver  Cowdery,  David  Whitmer  and  Lyman  E.  Johnson,  united  with  a 
gang  of  counterfeiters,  thieves,  liars  and  blacklegs  of  the  deepest  dye,  to  deceive, 
cheat  and  defraud  the  Saints  out  of  their  property,  by  every  art  and  stratagem 
which  wickedness  could  invent ;  using  the  influence  of  the  vilest  persecutions  to 
bring  vexatious  lawsuits,  villainous  prosecutions,  and  even  stealing  not  excepted.  .  .  . 
During  the  full  career  of  Oliver  Cowdery  and  David  Whitmer's  bogus  money 
business,  it  got  abroad  into  the  world  that  they  were  engaged  in  it,  and  several 
gentlemen  were  preparing  to  commence  a  prosecution  against  Cowdery ;  he 
finding  it  out,  took  with  him  Lyman  E.  Johnson,  and  fled  to  Far  West  with  their 
families;  Cowdery  stealing  property  and  bringing  it  with  him,  which  has  been, 
within  a  few  weeks  past,  obtained  by  the  owner  by  means  of  a  search-warrant; 
and  he  was  saved  from  the  penitentiary  by  the  influence  of  two  influential  men  of 
the  place.  He  also  brought  notes  with  him  upon  which  he  had  received  pay, 
and  made  an  attempt  to  sell  them  to  Mr.  Arthur  of  Clay  county."  l 

1  "  Documents  in  Relation  to  the  Disturbances  with  the  Mormons,"  Missouri  Legis- 
lature (1841),  p.  103. 

G 


82  THE  STORY  OF  THE  MORMONS 

Rigdon,  who  was  the  author  of  this  arraignment,  realizing  that 
the  enemies  of  the  church  would  not  fail  to  make  use  of  this 
aspersion  of  the  character  of  the  witnesses,  attempted  to  "hedge" 
by  saying  in  the  same  document,  "  We  wish  to  remind  you  that 
Oliver  Cowdery  and  David  Whitmer  were  among  the  principal  of 
those  who  were  the  means  of  gathering  us  to  this  place  by  their 
testimony  which  they  gave  concerning  the  plates  of  the  Book  of 
Mormon,  that  they  were  shown  to  them  by  an  angel;  which  testi- 
mony we  believe  now  as  much  as  before  you  had  so  scandalously 
disgraced  it."     Could  affrontery  go  to  greater  lengths  ? 

Cowdery  and  David  Whitmer  fled  to  Richmond,  Missouri, 
where  Whitmer  lived  until  his  death  in  January,  1888.  Cowdery 
went  to  Tiffin,  Ohio,  where,  after  failing  to  obtain  a  position  as  an 
editor  because  of  his  Mormon  reputation,  he  practised  law.  While 
living  there  he  renounced  his  Mormon  views,  joined  the  Methodist 
church,  and  became  superintendent  of  a  Sunday-school.  Later  he 
moved  to  Wisconsin,  but,  after  being  defeated  for  the  legislature 
there,  he  recanted  his  Methodist  belief,  and  rejoined  the  Saints 
while  they  were  at  Council  Bluffs,  in  October,  1848,  after  the 
main  body  had  left  for  Salt  Lake  Valley.  He  addressed  a  meeting 
there  by  invitation,  testifying  to  the  truth  of  the  Book  of  Mormon, 
and  the  mission  of  Smith  as  a  prophet,  and  saying  that  he  wanted 
to  be  rebaptized  into  the  church,  not  as  a  leader,  but  simply  as  a 
member.1  He  did  not,  however,  go  to  Utah  with  the  Saints,  but 
returned  to  his  old  friend  Whitmer  in  Missouri,  and  died  there  in 
1850.  It  has  been  stated  that  he  offered  to  give  a  full  renunciation 
of  the  Mormon  faith  when  he  united  with  the  Methodists  at  Tiffin, 
if  required,  but  asked  to  be  excused  from  doing  so  on  the  ground 
that  it  would  invite  criticism  and  bring  him  into  contempt.2  One 
of  his  Tiffin  acquaintances  afterward  testified  that  Cowdery  con- 
fessed to  him  that,  when  he  signed  the  "testimony,"  he  "was  not 
one  of  the  best  men  in  the  world,"  using  his  own  expression.3  The 
Mormons  were  always  grateful  to  him  for  his  silence  under  their 
persecutions,  and  the  Millennial  Star,  in  a  notice  of  his  death, 
expressed  satisfaction  that  in  the  days  of  his  apostasy  "  he  never, 
in  a  single  instance,  cast  the  least  doubt  on  his  former  testimony," 

1  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XI,  p.  14. 

2  "Naked  Truths  about  Mormonism,"  A.  B.  Demming,  Oakland,  California,  1888. 
8  "  Gregg's  History  of  Hancock  County,  Illinois,"  p.  257. 


THE   WITNESSES    TO   THE    PLATES  83 

adding,  "  May  he  rest  in  peace,  to  come  forth  in  the  morning  of 
the  first  resurrection  into  eternal  life,  is  the  earnest  desire  of  all 
Saints." 

The  Whitmers  were  a  Dutch  family,  known  among  their  neigh- 
bors as  believers  in  witches  and  in  the  miraculous  generally,  as 
has  been  shown  in  Mother  Smith's  account  of  their  sending  for 
Joseph.  A  "  revelation  "  to  the  three  witnesses  which  first  promised 
them  a  view  of  the  plates  (Sec.  17)  told  them,  "It  is  by  your  faith 
you  shall  obtain  a  view  of  them,"  and  directed  them  to  testify  con- 
cerning the  plates,  "  that  my  servant  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  may  not  be 
destroyed."  One  of  the  converts  who  joined  the  Mormons  at 
Kirtland,  Ohio,  testified  in  later  years  that  David  Whitmer  con- 
fessed to  her  that  he  never  actually  saw  the  plates,  explaining  his 
testimony  thus :  "  Suppose  that  you  had  a  friend  whose  character 
was  such  that  you  knew  it  impossible  that  he  could  lie ;  then,  if  he 
described  a  city  to  you  which  you  had  never  seen,  could  you  not, 
by  the  eye  of  faith,  see  the  city  just  as  he  described  it?"1 

The  Mormons  have  found  consolation  in  the  fact  that  Whitmer 
continued  to  affirm  his  belief  in  the  authenticity  of  the  Mormon 
Bible  to  the  day  of  his  death.  He  declared,  however,  that  Smith 
and  Young  had  led  the  flock  astray,  and,  after  the  open  announce- 
ment of  polygamy  in  Utah,  he  announced  a  church  of  his  own, 
called  "The  Church  of  Christ,"  refusing  to  affiliate  even  with  the 
Reorganized  Church  because  of  the  latter's  adherence  to  Smith. 
In  his  "Address  to  Believers  in  the  Book  of  Mormon,"  a  pamphlet 
issued  in  his  eighty-second  year,  he  said,  "  Now,  in  1849  the  Lord  saw 
fit  to  manifest  unto  John  Whitmer,  Oliver  Cowdery  and  myself 
nearly  all  the  remaining  errors  of  doctrine  into  which  we  had  been 
led  by  the  heads  of  the  church."  The  reader  from  all  this  can 
form  an  estimate  of  the  trustworthiness  of  the  second  witness  on 
such  a  subject. 

We  have  already  learned  a  great  deal  about  Martin  Harris's  men- 
tal equipment.  A  lawyer  of  standing  in  Palmyra  told  Dr.  Clark 
that,  after  Harris  had  signed  the  "  testimony,"  he  pressed  him 
with  the  question  :  "  Did  you  see  the  plates  with  your  natural  eyes, 
just  as  you  see  this  pencil  case  in  my  hand?  Now  say  yes  or  no." 
Harris  replied  (in  corroboration  of  Joe's  misgiving  at  the  time) : 
"  Why,  I  did  not  see  them  as  I  do  that  pencil  case,  yet  I  saw  them 

1  Mrs.  Dickenson's  "  New  Light  on  Mormonism." 


1/ 


84  THE    STORY    OF    THE    MORMONS 

with  the  eye  of  faith.  I  saw  them  just  as  distinctly  as  I  see  any- 
thing around  me  —  though  at  the  time  they  were  covered  over 
with  a  cloth."1 

Harris  followed  Smith  to  Ohio  and  then  to  Missouri,  but  was 
ever  a  trouble  to  him,  although  Smith  always  found  his  money 
useful.  In  1831,  in  Missouri,  it  required  a  "revelation"  (Sec.  58) 
to  spur  him  to  "lay  his  monies  before  the  Bishop."  As  his  money 
grew  scarcer,  he  received  less  and  less  recognition  from  the  Mor- 
mon leaders,  and  was  finally  expelled  from  the  church.  Smith 
thus  referred  to  him  in  the  Elders'  Journal,  July,  1837,  one  of  his 
publications  in  Ohio :  "  There  are  negroes  who  wear  white  skins 
as  well  as  black  ones,  granny  Parish,  and  others  who  acted  as 
lackeys,  such  as  Martin  Harris." 

Harris  did  not  appear  on  the  scene  during  the  stay  of  the 
Mormons  in  Illinois,  having  joined  the  Shakers  and  lived  with 
them  a  year  or  two.  When  Strang  claimed  the  leadership  of  the 
church  after  Smith's  death,  Harris  gave  him  his  support,  and  was 
sent  by  him  with  others  to  England  in  1846  to  do  missionary  work. 
His  arrival  there  was  made  the  occasion  of  an  attack  on  him  by 
the  Millennial  Star,  which,  among  other  things,  said  :  — 

"We  do  not  feel  to  warn  the  Saints  against  him,  for  his  own  unbridled  tongue 
will  soon  show  out  specimens  of  folly  enough  to  give  any  person  a  true  index 
to  the  character  of  the  man  ;  but  if  the  Saints  wish  to  know  what  the  Lord  hath 
said  of  him,  they  may  turn  to  the  178th  page  of  the  Book  of  Doctrine  and  Cove- 
nants, and  the  person  there  called  a  wicked  man  is  no  other  than  Martin 
Harris,  and  he  owned  to  it  then,  but  probably  might  not  now.  It  is  not  the 
first  time  the  Lord  chose  a  wicked  man  as  a  witness.  Also  on  page  193,  read 
the  whole  revelation  given  to  him,  and  ask  yourselves  if  the  Lord  ever  talked  in 
that  way  to  a  good  man.  Every  one  can  see  that  he  must  have  been  a  wicked 
man."2 

Harris  visited  Palmyra  in  1858.  He  then  said  that  his  prop- 
erty was  all  gone,  that  he  had  declined  a  restoration  to  the  Mormon 
church,  but  that  he  continued  to  believe  in  Mormonism.  He 
thought  better  of  his  declination,  however,  and  sought  a  reunion 
with  the  church  in  Utah  in  1870.  His  backslidings  had  carried 
him  so  far  that  the  church  authorities  told  him  it  would  be  neces- 
sary for  him  to  be  rebaptized.  This  he  consented  to  with  some 
reluctance,  after,  as  he  said,  "  he  had  seen  his  father  seeking  his 
aid.     He  saw  his  father  at  the  foot  of  a  ladder,  striving  to  get  up 

1  "Gleanings  by  the  Way."  2  Vol.  VIII,  p.  123. 


THE   WITNESSES    TO   THE   PLATES  85 

to  him,  and  he  went  down  to  him,  taking  him  by  the  hand,  and 
helped  him  up."1  He  settled  in  Cache  County,  Utah,  where  he 
died  on  July  10,  1875,  in  his  ninety-third  year.  "  He  bore  his 
testimony  to  the  truth  and  divinity  of  the  Book  of  Mormon  a  short 
time  before  he  departed,"  wrote  his  son  to  an  inquirer,  "  and  the 
last  words  he  uttered,  when  he  could  not  speak  the  sentence,  were 
'Book,'  'Book,'  'Book.'" 

The  precarious  character  of  Smith's  original  partners  in  the 
Bible  business  is  further  illustrated  by  his  statement  that,  in  the 
summer  of  1830,  Cowdery  sent  him  word  that  he  had  discovered 
an  error  in  one  of  Smith's  "revelations,"2  and  that  the  Whitmer 
family  agreed  with  him  on  the  subject.  Smith  was  as  determined 
in  opposing  this  questioning  of  his  divine  authority  as  he  always 
was  in  stemming  any  opposition  to  his  leadership,  and  he  made 
them  all  acknowledge  their  error.  Again,  when  Smith  returned 
to  Fayette  from  Harmony,  in  August,  1830  (more  than  a  year 
after  the  plates  were  shown  to  the  witnesses),  he  found  that 
"  Satan  had  been  lying  in  wait,"  and  that  Hiram  Page,  of  the 
second  list  of  witnesses,  had  been  obtaining  revelations  through 
a  "  peek-stone "  of  his  own,  and  that,  what  was  more  serious, 
Cowdery  and  the  Whitmer  family  believed  in  them.  The  result 
of  this  was  an  immediate  "revelation"  (Sec.  28)  directing  Cowdery 
to  go  and  preach  the  Gospel  to  the  Lamanites  (Indians)  on  the 
western  border,  and  to  take  along  with  him  Hiram  Page,  and  tell 
him  that  the  things  he  had  written  by  means  of  the  "  peek-stone  " 
were  not  of  the  Lord. 

Neither  Smith's  autobiography  nor  the  "Book  of  Doctrine  and 
Covenants"  contains  any  explanation  of  the  second  "testimony." 
The  list  of  persons  who  signed  it,  however,  leaves  little  doubt  that 
the  prophet  yielded  to  their  "teasing"  as  he  did  to  that  of  the 
original  three.  The  first  four  signers  were  members  of  the  Whit- 
mer family.  Hiram  Page  was  a  root-doctor  by  calling,  and  a  son- 
in-law  of  Peter  Whitmer,  Sr.  The  three  Smiths  were  the  prophet's 
father  and  two  of  his  brothers.3 

1  For  an  account  of  Harris's  Utah  experience,  see  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XLVIII, 

PP-  357-389. 

2  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XIV,  p.  36. 

3  Christian  Whitmer  died  in  Clay  County,  Missouri,  November  27,  1835;  Jacob  died 
in  Richmond  County,  April  21,  1866;  Peter  died  in  Clay  County,  September  22,  1836; 
Hiram  Page  died  on  a  farm  in  Ray  County,  August  12,  1852. 


86  THE   STORY   OF   THE  MORMONS 

The  favorite  Mormon  reply  to  any  question  as  to  the  value  of 
these  "  testimonies  "  is  the  challenge,  "  Is  there  a  person  on  the 
earth  who  can  prove  that  these  eleven  witnesses  did  not  see  the 
plates  ? "  Curiously,  the  prophet  himself  can  be  cited  to  prove 
this,  in  the  words  of  the  revelation  granting  a  sight  of  the  plates  to 
the  first  three,  which  said,  "  And  to  none  else  will  I  grant  this 
power,  to  receive  this  same  testimony  among  this  generation."  A 
footnote  to  this  declaration  in  the  "  Doctrine  and  Covenants " 
offers,  as  an  explanation  of  Testimony  No.  2,  the  statement  that 
others  "  may  receive  a  knowledge  by  other  manifestations."  This 
is  well  meant  but  transparent. 

Mother  Smith  in  later  years  added  herself  to  these  witnesses. 
She  said  to  the  Rev.  Henry  Caswall,  in  Nauvoo,  in  1842,  "  I  have 
myself  seen  and  handled  the  golden  plates."  Mr.  Caswall  adds  : 
"While  the  old  woman  was  thus  delivering  herself,  I  fixed  my 
eyes  steadily  upon  her.  She  faltered  and  seemed  unwilling  to 
meet  my  glances,  but  gradually  recovered  her  self-possession. 
The  melancholy  thought  entered  my  mind  that  this  poor  old 
creature  was  not  simply  a  dupe  of  her  son's  knavery,  but  that  she 
had  taken  an  active  part  in  the  deception." 

Two  matters  have  been  cited  by  Mormon  authorities  to  show 
that  there  was  nothing  so  very  unusual  in  the  discovery  of  buried 
plates  containing  engraved  letters.  Announcement  was  made  in 
1843  of  the  discovery  near  Kinderhook,  Illinois,  of  six  plates  simi- 
lar to  those  described  by  Smith.  The  story,  as  published  in  the 
Times  and  Seasons,  with  a  certificate  signed  by  nine  local  residents, 
set  forth  that  a  merchant  of  the  place,  named  Robert  Wiley,  while 
digging  in  a  mound,  after  finding  ashes  and  human  bones,  came 
to  "  a  bundle  that  consisted  of  six  plates  of  brass,  of  a  bell  shape, 
each  having  a  hole  near  the  small  end,  and  a  ring  through  them 
all " ;  and  that,  when  cleared  of  rust,  they  were  found  to  be  "  com- 
pletely covered  with  characters  that  none  as  yet  have  been  able  to 
read."  Hyde,  accepting  this  story,  printed  a  facsimile  of  one  of 
these  plates  on  the  cover  of  his  book,  and  seems  to  rest  on  Wiley's 
statement  his  belief  that  "  Smith  did  have  plates  of  some  kind." 
Stenhouse,1  who  believed  that  Smith  and  his  witnesses  did  not 

1  T.  B.  H.  Stenhouse,  a  Scotchman,  was  converted  to  the  Mormon  belief  in  1846, 
performed  diligent  missionary  work  in  Europe,  and  was  for  three  years  president  of  the 
Swiss  and  Italian  missions.     Joining  the  brethren  in  Utah  with  his  wife,  he  was  per- 


Facsimile  of  One  of  the  Kinderhook  Plates. 


Facsimile  of  One  of  the  Kinderhook  Plates. 


Facsimile  of  One  of  the  Kinderhook  Plates. 


THE   WITNESSES   TO   THE   PLATES  87 

perpetrate  in  the  new  Bible  an  intentional  fraud,  but  thought  they 
had  visions  and  "  revelations,"  referring  to  the  Kinderhook  plates, 
says  that  they  were  "  actually  and  unquestionably  discovered  by 
one  Mr.  R.  Wiley."  Smith  himself,  after  no  one  else  could  read 
the  writing  on  them,  declared  that  he  had  translated  them,  and 
found  them  to  be  a  history  of  a  descendant  of  Ham.1 

But  the  true  story  of  the  Kinderhook  plates  was  disclosed  by 
an  affidavit  made  by  W.  Fulgate  of  Mound  Station,  Brown  County, 
Illinois,  before  Jay  Brown,  Justice  of  the  Peace,  on  June  30, 
1879.  In  this  he  stated  that  the  plates  were  "a  humbug,  gotten 
up  by  Robert  Wiley,  Bridge  Whitton,  and  myself.  Whitton  (who 
was  a  blacksmith)  cut  the  plates  out  of  some  pieces  of  copper ; 
Wiley  and  I  made  the  hieroglyphics  by  making  impressions  on 
beeswax  and  filling  them  with  acid,  and  putting  it  on  the  plates. 
When  they  were  finished,  we  put  them  together  with  rust  made  of 
nitric  acid,  old  iron  and  lead,  and  bound  them  with  a  piece  of  hoop 
iron,  covering  them  completely  with  the  rust."  He  describes  the 
burial  of  the  plates  and  their  digging  up,  among  the  spectators  of 
the  latter  being  two  Mormon  elders,  Marsh  and  Sharp.  Sharp 
declared  that  the  Lord  had  directed  them  to  witness  the  digging. 
The  plates  were  borrowed  and  shown  to  Smith,  and  were  finally 
given  to  one  "Professor"  McDowell  of  St.  Louis,  for  his  museum.2 

In  attacking  Professor  Anthon's  statement  concerning  the 
alleged  hieroglyphics  shown  to  him  by  Harris,  Orson  Pratt,  in  his 
"  Divine  Authenticity  of  the  Book  of  Mormon,"  thought  that  he 
found  substantial  support  for  Smith's  hieroglyphics  in  the  fact  that 
"  Two  years  after  the  Book  of  Mormon  appeared  in  print,  Profes- 
sor Rafinesque,  in  his  Atlantic  Journal  iox  1832,  gave  to  the  public 
a  facsimile  of    American  glyphs,3   found  in   Mexico.      They  are 

suaded  to  take  a  second  wife.  Not  long  afterward  he  joined  in  the  protest  against 
Young's  dictatorial  course  which  was  known  as  the  "New  Movement,"  and  was  expelled 
from  the  church.  His  "Rocky  Mountain  Saints"  (1873)  contains  so  much  valuable 
information  connected  with  the  history  of  the  church  that  it  has  been  largely  drawn  on 
by  E.  W.  Tullidge  in  his  ''  History  of  Salt  Lake  City  and  Its  Founders,"  which  is  accepted 
by  the  church. 

1  Millennial  Star,  January  15,  1859,  where  cuts  of  the  plates  (here  produced)  are 
given. 

2  Wyl's  "  Mormon  Portraits,"  p.  207.  The  secretary  of  the  Missouri  Historical 
Society  writes  me  that  McDowell's  museum  disappeared  some  years  ago,  most  of  its  con- 
tents being  lost  or  stolen,  and  the  fate  of  the  Kinderhook  plates  cannot  be  ascertained. 

3  "  Glyph :  A  pictograph  or  word  carved  in  a  compact  distinct  figure." —  "  Standard 
Dictionary." 


88  THE  STORY  OF  THE  MORMONS 

arranged  in  columns.  ...  By  an  inspection  of  the  facsimile  of 
these  forty-six  elementary  glyphs,  we  find  all  the  particulars  which 
Professor  Anthon  ascribes  to  the  characters  which  he  says  '  a 
plain-looking  countryman'  presented  to  him."  These  "  elemen- 
tary glyphs  "  of  Rafinesque  are  some  of  the  characters  found  on 
the  famous  "  Tablet  of  the  Cross  "  in  the  ruins  of  Palenque,  Mex- 
ico, since  so  fully  described  by  Stevens.  A  facsimile  of  the  entire 
Tablet  may  be  found  on  page  355,  Vol.  IV,  Bancroft's  "Native 
Races  of  the  Pacific  States."  Rafinesque  selected  these  charac- 
ters from  the  Tablet,  and  arranged  them  in  columns  alongside  of 
other  ancient  writings,  in  order  to  sustain  his  argument  that  they 
resembled  an  old  Libyan  alphabet.  Rafinesque  was  a  voluminous 
writer  both  on  archaeological  and  botanical  subjects,  but  wholly 
untrustworthy.  Of  his  Atlantic  Journal  (of  which  only  eight  num- 
bers appeared)  his  biographer,  R.  E.  Call,  says  that  it  had  "  abso- 
lutely no  scientific  value."  Professor  Asa  Gray,  in  a  review  of 
his  botanical  writings  in  Silliman's  Journal,  Vol.  XL,  No.  2,  1841, 
said,  "  He  assumes  thirty  to  one  hundred  years  as  the  average 
time  required  for  the  production  of  a  new  species,  and  five  hun- 
dred to  one  thousand  for  a  new  genus."  Professor  Gray  refers  to 
a  paper  which  Rafinesque  sent  to  the  editor  of  a  scientific  journal 
describing  twelve  new  species  of  thunder  and  lightning.  He  was 
very  fond  of  inventing  names,  and  his  designation  of  Palenque  as 
Otolum  was  only  an  illustration  of  this.  So  much  for  the  "  ele- 
mentary glyphs." 


CHAPTER   XI 

THE   MORMON   BIBLE 

The  Mormon  Bible,1  both  in  a  literary  and  a  theological  sense, 
is  just  such  a  production  as  would  be  expected  to  result  from  hand- 
ing over  to  Smith  and  his  fellow-"  translators  "  a  mass  of  Spauld- 
ing's  material  and  new  doctrinal  matter  for  collation  and  copying. 
Not  one  of  these  men  possessed  any  literary  skill  or  accurate 
acquaintance  with  the  Scriptures.  David  Whitmer,  in  an  interview 
in  Missouri  in  his  later  years,  said,  "  So  illiterate  was  Joseph  at 
that  time  that  he  didn't  know  that  Jerusalem  was  a  walled  city,  and 
he  was  utterly  unable  to  pronounce  many  of  the  names  that  the 
magic  power  of  the  Urim  and  Thummim  revealed."  Chronology, 
grammar,  geography,  and  Bible  history  were  alike  ignored  in  the 
work.  An  effort  was  made  to  correct  some  of  these  errors  in  the 
early  days  of  the  church,  and  Smith  speaks  of  doing  some  of  this 
work  himself  at  Nauvoo.  An  edition  issued  there  in  1842  con- 
tains on  the  title-page  the  words,  "  Carefully  revised  by  the  trans- 
lator." Such  corrections  have  continued  to  the  present  day,  and  a 
comparison  of  the  latest  Salt  Lake  edition  with  the  first  has  shown 
more  than  three  thousand  changes. 

The  person  who  for  any  reason  undertakes  the  reading  of  this 
book  sets  before  himself  a  tedious  task.  Even  the  orthodox  Mor- 
mons have  found  this  to  be  true,  and  their  Bible  has  played  a  very 
much  less  considerable  part  in  the  church  worship  than  Smith's 
"revelations"  and  the  discourses  of  their  preachers.  Referring 
to  Orson  Pratt's  2  labored  writings  on  this  Bible,  Stenhouse  says, 

1  The  title  of  this  Bible  is  "  The  Book  of  Mormon "  ;  but  as  one  of  its  sub- 
divisions is  a  Book  of  Mormon,  I  use  the  title  "  Mormon  Bible,"  both  to  avoid  confu- 
sion and  for  convenience. 

2  Orson  Pratt  was  a  clerk  in  a  store  in  Hiram,  Ohio,  when  he  was  converted  to 
Mormonism.  He  seems  to  have  been  a  natural  student,  and  he  rose  to  prominence  in 
the  church,  being  one  of  the  first  to  expound  and  defend  the  Mormon  Bible  and  doc- 
trines, holding  a  professorship  in  Nauvoo  University,  publishing  works  on  the  higher 
mathematics,  and  becoming  one  of  the  Twelve  Apostles. 


90  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

"  Of  the  hundreds  of  thousands  of  witnesses  to  whom  God  has 
revealed  the  truth  of  the  'Book  of  Mormon,'  Pratt  knows  full  well 
that  comparatively  few  indeed  have  ever  read  that  book,  know  little 
or  nothing  intelligently  of  its  contents,  and  take  little  interest  in 
it."  x  An  examination  of  its  contents  is  useful,  therefore,  rather 
as  a  means  of  proving  the  fraudulent  character  of  its  pretension 
to  divine  revelation  than  as  a  means  of  ascertaining  what  the 
members  of  the  Mormon  church  are  taught. 

The  following  page  presents  a  facsimile  of  the  title-page  of 
the  first  edition  of  this  Bible.  The  editions  of  to-day  substitute 
"Translated  by  Joseph  Smith,  Jun.,"  for  "By  Joseph  Smith,  junior, 
author  and  proprietor." 

The  first  edition  contains  588  duodecimo  pages,  and  is  divided 
into  1 5  books  which  are  named  as  follows :  "  First  Book  of  Nephi, 
his  reign  and  ministry,"  7  chapters ;  "  Second  Book  of  Nephi," 
15  chapters;  "  Book  of  Jacob,  the  Brother  of  Nephi,"  5  chapters; 
"  Book  of  Enos,"  1  chapter  ;  "  Book  of  Jarom,"  1  chapter;  "  Book 
of  Omni,"  1  chapter;  "Words  of  Mormon,"  1  chapter;  "Book  of 
Mosiah,"  13  chapters;  "Book  of  Alma,  a  Son  of  Alma,"  30  chap- 
ters; "Book  of  Helaman,"  5  chapters;  "Third  Book  of  Nephi, 
the  Son  of  Nephi,  which  was  the  son  of  Helaman,"  14  chapters  ; 
"  Fourth  Book  of  Nephi,  which  is  the  Son  of  Nephi,  one  of  the 
Disciples  of  Jesus  Christ,"  1  chapter ;  "  Book  of  Mormon,"  4  chap- 
ters ;  "  Book  of  Ether,"  6  chapters  ;  "  Book  of  Moroni,"  10  chap- 
ters. The  chapters  in  the  first  edition  were  not  divided  into 
verses,  that  work,  with  the  preparation  of  the  very  complete  foot- 
note references  in  the  later  editions,  having  been  performed  by 
Orson  Pratt. 

The  historical  narrative  that  runs  through  the  book  is  so  dis- 
jointedly  arranged,  mixed  up  with  doctrinal  parts,  and  repeated, 
that  it  is  not  easy  to  unravel  it.  The  following  summary  of  it  is 
contained  in  a  letter  to  Colonel  John  Wentworth  of  Chicago,  signed 
by  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  which  was  printed  in  Wentworth's  Chicago 
newspaper  and  also  in  the  Mormon  Times  and  Seasons  of  March 
1,  1842  :  — 

"The  history  of  America  is  unfolded  from  its  first  settlement  by  a  colony  that 
came  from  the  Tower  of  Babel  at  the  confusion  of  languages,  to  the  beginning  of 

1  "  Rocky  Mountain  Saints,"  p.  553. 


r 


THE 

BOOK  OF  MORMON: 


AN  ACCOUNT  WRITTEN  BY  THE  HAND  OF  MOR- 
MON, UPON  PLATES  TAKEN  FROM 
THE  PLATES  OF  NEPHI. 


Wherefore  it  is  an  abridgment  of  the  Record  of  the  People  of  Neplii ;  and  also  <£ 
the  Lansamtes  ;  written  to  the  Laitianites,  which  are  a  remnant  of  the  House  of 
Israel  .  ii. 'I  alJo  to  .lew  and  Gentile  ;  written  by  way  of  commandment,  and  also 
by  llie  spirit  of  Prophesy  and  of  Revelation.  Written,  and  sealedmp,  and  hid, 
up  unto*  tie  Lord,  mat  they  might  not  be  destroyed  ;  to  come  forth  by  the  gif; 
and  power  of  GoP:  unto  the  interpretation  thereof;  sealed  by  tho  hand  of  Moro- 
ni, and  hid  up  unto  the  Lord,  to  come  forth  in  due  time  by  the  way  of  Gentile  ; 
the  interpretation  thereof  by  the  gift  of  God  ;  an   abridgment   taken  from   the 

'>    Rook  of  Ether. 

Aho,  which  is  a  Recofd  of  the  People  of  Jared,  which  were  scattered  at  the  time 
•  trVfi  Lord  confounded  the  language  of  the  people  when  they  were  building  a 
tower  to  tret  to' Heaven  :  which  is  to  shew  unto  the  remnant  of  the  House  of 
Israel  how  creat  things  the  Lord  hath  done  for  theii  fathers  ;  and  that  they  m.iy 
knnw  the  covenants  of  the  L'ffeiD,  that  they  are  not  cast  off  forever;  and  also  to 
the  convincing  of  the  Jew  and  Gentile  that  Jesus  is  the  Christ,  the  Etkhnai. 
God,  tnanife  ''ing  Himself  unto  all  nations.  And  now  if  there  be  fault,  it  be  the 
mistake  of  ran  ;  wherefore  condemn  not  the  things  of  God,  that  ye  may  be 
found  spotless  at  the  judgment  seat  of  Christ. 


BY  JOSEPH  SMITH,  JUNIOR, 

AUTHOR  AND  PROPRIETOR. 


PALMYRA : 

'POINTED  BY  E.  B.  GRANDIX,  FOR. THE  AUTHOR. 

lfto. 


Facsimile  of  Title-page  of  First  Edition  of  Mormon  Bible. 


THE    MORMON    BIBLE  91 

the  5th  century  of  the  Christian  era.  We  are  informed  by  these  records  that 
America  in  ancient  times  has  been  inhabited  by  two  distinct  races  of  people. 
The  first  were  called  Jaredites,  and  came  directly  from  the  Tower  of  Babel.  The 
second  race  came  directly  from  the  city  of  Jerusalem  about  600  years  before 
Christ.  They  were  principally  Israelites  of  the  descendants  of  Joseph.  The 
Jaredites  were  destroyed  about  the  time  that  the  Israelites  came  from  Jerusalem, 
who  succeeded  them  in  the  inhabitance  of  the  country.  The  principal  nation  of 
the  second  race  fell  in  battle  toward  the  close  of  the  fourth  century.  The  remnant 
are  the  Indians  that  now  inhabit  this  country." 

This  history  purports  to  have  been  handed  down,  on  metallic 
plates,  from  one  historian  to  another,  beginning  with  Nephi,  from 
the  time  of  the  departure  from  Jerusalem.  Finally  (4  Nephi  i. 
48,  49  1),  the  people  being  wicked,  Ammaron,  by  direction  of  the 
Holy  Ghost,  hid  these  sacred  records  "that  they  might  come  again 
unto  the  remnant  of  the  house  of  Jacob." 

To  bring  the  story  down  to  a  comparatively  recent  date,  and 
account  for  the  finding  of  the  plates  by  Smith,  the  Book  of  Mor- 
mon was  written  by  the  "  author."  This  subdivision  is  an  abridg- 
ment of  the  previous  records.  It  relates  that  Mormon,  a  descendant 
of  Nephi,  when  ten  years  old,  was  told  by  Ammaron  that,  when 
about  twenty-four  years  old,  he  should  go  to  the  place  where  the 
records  were  hidden,  take  only  the  plates  of  Nephi,  and  engrave 
on  them  all  the  things  he  had  observed  concerning  the  people. 
The  next  year  Mormon  was  taken  by  his  father,  whose  name  also 
was  Mormon,  to  the  land  of  Zarahemla,  which  had  become  cov- 
ered with  buildings  and  very  populous,  but  the  people  were  warlike 
and  wicked.  Mormon  in  time,  "seeing  that  the  Lamanites  were 
about  to  overthrow  the  land,"  took  the  records  from  their  hiding- 
place.  He  himself  accepted  the  command  of  the  armies  of  the 
Nephites,  but  they  were  defeated  with  great  slaughter,  the  Laman- 
ites laying  waste  their  cities  and  driving  them  northward. 

Finally  Mormon  sent  a  letter  to  the  king  of  the  Lamanites, 
asking  that  the  Nephites  might  gather  their  people  "  unto  the 
land  of  Cumorah,  by  a  hill  which  was  called  Cumorah,  and  there 
we  would  give  them  battle."  There,  in  the  year  384  a.d.,  Mor- 
mon "  made  this  record  out  of  the  plates  of  Nephi,  and  hid  up  in 
the  hill  Cumorah  all  the  records  which  have  been  entrusted  to  me 
by  the  hand  of  the  Lord,  save  it  were  those  few  plates  which  I 

1  All  references  to  the  Mormon  Bible  by  chapter  and  verse  refer  to  Salt  Lake 
City  edition  of  1888. 


92  THE  STORY  OF  THE  MORMONS 

gave  unto  my  son  Moroni."  a  This  hill,  according  to  the  Mormon 
teaching,  is  the  hill  near  Palmyra,  New  York,  where  Smith  found 
the  plates,  just  as  Mormon  had  deposited  them. 

In  the  battle  which  took  place  there  the  Nephites  were  practi- 
cally annihilated,  and  all  the  fugitives  were  killed  except  Moroni, 
the  son  of  Mormon,  who  undertook  the  completion  of  the  "  record." 
Moroni  excuses  the  briefness  of  his  narrative  by  explaining  that 
he  had  not  room  in  the  plates,  "  and  ore  have  I  none  "  (to  make 
others).  What  he  adds  is  in  the  nature  of  a  defence  of  the  re- 
vealed character  of  the  Mormon  Bible  and  of  Smith's  character  as 
a  prophet.  Those,  for  instance,  who  say  that  there  are  no  longer 
"  revelations,  nor  prophecies,  nor  gifts,  nor  healing,  nor  speaking 
with  tongues,"  are  told  that  they  know  not  the  Gospel  of  Christ 
and  do  not  understand  the  Scriptures.  An  effort  is  made  to  fore- 
stall criticism  of  the  "  mistakes"  that  are  conceded  in  the  title-page 
dedication  by  saying,  "  Condemn  me  not  because  of  mine  imper- 
fection, neither  my  father,  because  of  his  imperfection,  neither 
them  who  have  written  before  him  "  (Book  of  Mormon  ix.  31). 

Evidently  foreseeing  that  it  would  be  asked  why  these  "  rec- 
ords," written  by  Jews  and  their  descendants,  were  not  in  Hebrew, 
Mormon  adds  (chap.  ix.  32,  33):  — 

"  And  now  behold,  we  have  written  this  record  according  to  our  knowledge, 
in  the  characters  which  are  called  among  us  the  reformed  Egyptian,  being  handed 
down  and  altered  by  us,  according  to  our  manner  of  speech. 

"  And  if  our  plates  had  been  sufficiently  large,  we  should  have  written  in  He- 
brew ;  but  the  Hebrew  hath  been  altered  by  us  also  ;  and  if  we  could  have  written 
in  Hebrew,  behold,  ye  would  have  had  no  imperfection  in  our  record.1' 

Few  parts  of  this  mythical  Bible  approached  nearer  to  the 
burlesque  than  this  excuse  for  having  descendants  of  the  Jews 
write  in  "  reformed  Egyptian." 

The  secular  story  of  the  ancient  races  running  through  this 
Bible  is  so  confused  by  the  introduction  of  new  matter  by  the 
"author"2  and  by  repetitions  that  it  is  puzzling  to  pick  it  out. 

1  Hyde  gives  a  list  of  twenty-four  additional  plates  mentioned  in  this  Bible  which 
must  still  await  digging  up  in  the  hill  near  Palmyra. 

2  Professor  Whitsitt,  of  the  Southern  Baptist  Theological  Seminary,  Louisville, 
Kentucky,  in  his  article  on  Mormonism  in  "The  Concise  Dictionary  of  Religious 
Knowledge,  and  Gazetteer"  (New  York,  1891),  divides  the  Mormon  Bible  into  three 
sections,  viz. :  the  first  thirteen  books,  presented  as  the  works  of  Mormon;  the  Book  of 
Ether,  with  which  Mormon  had  no  connection;   and  the  fifteenth  book,  "which  was 


THE   MORMON    BIBLE  93 

The  Book  of  Ether  was  somewhat  puzzling  even  to  the  early  Mor- 
mons, and  we  find  Parley  P.  Pratt,  in  his  analysis  of  it,  printed  in 
London  in  1854,  saying,  "Ether  seems  to  have  been  a  lineal 
descendant  of  Jared." 

Very  concisely,  this  Bible  story  of  the  most  ancient  race  that 
came  to  America,  the  Jaredites,  may  be  thus  stated :  — 

This  race,  being  righteous,  were  not  punished  by  the  Lord  at 
Babel,  but  were  led  to  the  ocean,  where  they  constructed  a  vessel 
by  direction  of  the  Lord,  in  which  they  sailed  to  North  America. 
According  to  the  Book  of  Ether,  there  were  eight  of  these  vessels, 
and  that  they  were  remarkable  craft  needs  only  the  description 
given  of  them  to  show :  "  They  were  built  after  a  manner  that 
they  were  exceeding  tight,  even  that  they  would  hold  water  like 
unto  a  dish  ;  and  the  bottom  thereof  was  tight  like  unto  a  dish  ; 
and  the  sides  thereof  were  tight  like  unto  a  dish ;  and  the  ends 
thereof  were  peaked ;  and  the  top  thereof  was  tight  like  unto  a 
dish  ;  and  the  length  thereof  was  the  length  of  a  tree ;  and  the 
door  thereof,  when  it  was  shut,  was  tight  like  unto  a  dish"  (Book 

sent  forth  by  the  editor  under  the  name  of  Moroni."  He  thus  explains  his  view  of  the 
"  editing  "  that  was  done  in  the  preparation  of  the  work  for  publication  :  — 

"The  editor  undertook  to  rewrite  and  recast  the  whole  of  the  abridgment  (of 
Nephi's  previous  history),  but  his  industry  failed  him  at  the  close  of  the  Book  of  Omni. 
The  first  six  books  that  he  had  rewritten  were  given  the  names  of  the  small  plates.  .  .  . 
The  book  called  the  '  Words  of  Mormon  '  in  the  original  work  stood  at  the  beginning,  as 
a  sort  of  preface  to  the  entire  abridgment  of  Mormon;  but  when  the  editor  had  rewrit- 
ten the  first  six  books,  he  felt  that  these  were  properly  his  own  performance,  and  the 
'Words  of  Mormon '  were  assigned  a  position  just  in  front  of  the  Book  of  Mosiah,  when 
the  abstract  of  Mormon  took  its  real  commencement.   .  .  . 

"The  question  may  now  be  raised  as  to  who  was  the  editor  of  the  Book  of  iMormon. 
...  In  its  theological  positions  and  coloring  the  Book  of  Mormon  is  a  volume  of 
Disciple  theology  (this  does  not  include  the  later  polygamous  doctrine  and  other  gross 
Mormon  errors).  This  conclusion  is  capable  of  demonstration  beyond  any  reasonable 
question.  Let  notice  also  be  taken  of  the  fact  that  the  Book  of  Mormon  bears  traces 
of  two  several  redactions.  It  contains,  in  the  first  redaction,  that  type  of  doctrine  which 
the  Disciples  held  and  proclaimed  prior  to  November  18,  1827,  when  they  had  not  yet 
formally  embraced  what  is  commonly  considered  to  be  the  tenet  of  baptismal  remission. 
It  also  contains  the  type  of  doctrine  which  the  Disciples  have  been  defending  since 
November  18,  1827,  under  the  name  of  the  ancient  Gospel,  of  which  the  tenet  of  so- 
called  baptismal  remission  is  a  leading  feature.  All  authorities  agree  that  Mr.  Smith 
obtained  possession  of  the  work  on  September  22,  1827,  a  period  of  nearly  two  months 
before  the  Disciples  concluded  to  embrace  this  tenet.  The  editor  felt  that  the  Book  of 
Mormon  would  be  sadly  incomplete  if  this  notion  were  not  included.  Accordingly,  he 
found  means  to  communicate  with  Mr.  Smith,  and,  regaining  possession  of  certain  por- 
tions of  the  manuscript,  to  insert  the  new  item.  .  .  .  Rigdon  was  the  only  Disciple  min- 
ister who  vigorously  and  continuously  demanded  that  his  brethren  should  adopt  the 
additional  points  that  have  been  indicated." 


94 


THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 


of  Ether  ii.  17).  This  description  certainly  establishes  the  general 
resemblance  of  these  barges  to  some  kind  of  a  dish,  but  the  rather 
careless  comparison  of  their  length  simply  to  that  of  a  "tree" 
leaves  this  detail  of  construction  uncertain. 

Just  before  they  embarked  in  these  vessels,  a  brother  of  Jared 
went  up  on  Mount  Shelem,  where  the  Lord  touched  sixteen  small 
stones  that  he  had  taken  up  with  him,  two  of  which  were  the  Urim 
and  Thummim,  by  means  of  which  Smith  translated  the  plates. 
These  stones  lighted  up  the  vessels  on  their  trip  across  the  ocean. 
Jared's  brother  was  told  by  the  spirit  on  the  mount,  "  Behold,  I  am 
Jesus  Christ."  A  footnote  in  the  modern  edition  of  this  Bible 
kindly  explains  that  Jared's  brother  "  saw  the  preexistent  spirit  of 
Jesus." 

When  they  landed  (somewhere  on  the  Isthmus  of  Darien),  the 
Lord  commanded  Nephi  to  make  "  plates  of  ore,"  on  which  should 
be  engraved  the  record  of  the  people.  This  was  the  origin  of 
Smith's  plates.  In  time  this  people  divided  themselves,  under  the 
leadership  of  two  of  Lehi's  sons  —  Nephi  and  Laman  —  into  Ne- 
phites  and  Lamanites  (with  subdivisions).  The  Lamanites,  in  the 
course  of  two  hundred  years,  had  become  dark  in  color  and  "  wild 
and  ferocious,  and  a  bloodthirsty  people  ;  full  of  idolatry  and  filthi- 
ness ;  feeding  upon  beasts  of  prey  ;  dwelling  in  tents  and  wander- 
ing about  in  the  wilderness,  with  a  short  skin  girdle  about  their 
loins,  and  their  heads  shaven ;  and  their  skill  was  in  the  bow  and 
the  cimeter  and  the  ax"  (Enos  i.  20).  The  Nephites,  on  the 
other  hand,  tilled  the  land  and  raised  flocks.  Between  the  two 
tribes  wars  waged,  the  Nephites  became  wicked,  and  in  the  course 
of  320  years  the  worst  of  them  were  destroyed  (Book  of  Alma). 

Then  the  Lord  commanded  those  who  would  hearken  to  his 
voice  to  depart  with  him  to  the  wilderness,  and  they  journeyed 
until  they  came  to  the  land  of  Zarahemla,  which  a  footnote  to  the 
modern  edition  explains  "  is  supposed  to  have  been  north  of  the 
head  waters  of  the  river  Magdalena,  its  northern  boundary  being 
a  few  days'  journey  south  of  the  Isthmus"  (of  Darien).  There 
they  found  the  people  of  Zarahemla,  who  had  left  Jerusalem  when 
Zedekiah  was  carried  captive  into  Babylon.  New  teachers  arose 
who  taught  the  people  righteousness,  and  one  of  them,  named 
Alma,  led  a  company  to  "a  place  which  was  called  Mormon," 
where  was  a  fountain  of  pure  water,  and  there  Alma  baptized  the 


THE   MORMON   BIBLE  95 

people.  The  Book  of  Alma,  the  longest  in  this  Bible,  is  largely 
an  account  of  the  secular  affairs  of  the  inhabitants,  with  stories  of 
great  battles,  a  prediction  of  the  coming  of  Christ,  and  an  account 
of  a  great  migration  northward,  and  the  building  of  ships  that 
sailed  in  the  same  direction. 

3  Nephi  describes  the  appearance  of  Christ  to  the  people  of 
the  western  continent,  preceded  by  a  star,  earthquakes,  etc.  On 
the  day  of  His  appearance  they  heard  "a  small  voice"  out  of 
heaven,  saying,  "  Behold  my  beloved  Son,  in  whom  I  am  well 
pleased,  in  whom  I  have  glorified  my  name  ;  hear  ye  him."  Then 
Christ  appeared  and  spoke  to  them,  generally  in  the  language  of 
the  New  Testament  (repeating,  for  instance,  the  Sermon  on  the 
Mount *),  and  afterward  ascended  into  heaven  in  a  cloud.  The 
expulsion  of  the  Nephites  northward,  and  their  final  destruction,  in 
what  is  now  New  York  State,  followed  in  the  course  of  the  next 
384  years. 

There  is  throughout  the  book  an  imitation  of  the  style  of  the 
Holy  Scriptures.  Verse  after  verse  begins  with  the  words  "and 
it  came  to  pass,"  as  Spaulding's  Ohio  neighbors  recalled  that  his 
story  did.  The  following  extract,  from  1  Nephi,  chap,  viii,  will 
give  an  illustration  of  the  literary  style  of  a  large  part  of  the 
work :  — 

"  1 .  And  it  came  to  pass  that  we  had  gathered  together  all  manner  of  seeds 
of  every  kind,  both  of  grain  of  every  kind,  and  also  of  the  seeds  of  fruit  of  every 
kind. 

"2.  And  it  came  to  pass  that  while  my  father  tarried  in  the  wilderness,  he 
spake  unto  us,  saying,  Behold,  I  have  dreamed  a  dream ;  or  in  other  words,  I 
have  seen  a  vision. 

"3.  And  behold,  because  of  the  thing  which  I  have  seen,  I  have  reason  to 
rejoice  in  the  Lord,  because  of  Nephi  and  also  of  Sam  ;  for  I  have  reason  to  sup- 
pose that  they,  and  also  many  of  their  seed,  will  be  saved. 

"  4.  But  behold,  Laman  and  Lemuel,  I  fear  exceedingly  because  of  you ;  for 
behold,  methought  I  saw  in  my  dream,  a  dark  and  dreary  wilderness. 

"5.  And  it  came  to  pass  that  I  saw  a  man,  and  he  was  dressed  in  a  white 
robe ;  and  he  came  and  stood  before  me. 

"6.    And  it  came  to  pass  that  he  spake  unto  me,  and  bade  me  follow  him. 

1  In  the  Mormon  version  of  this  sermon  the  words,  "  If  thy  right  eye  offend  thee, 
pluck  it  out  and  cast  it  from  thee,"  and  "  If  thy  right  hand  offend  thee,  cut  it  off  and 
cast  it  from  thee,"  are  lacking.  The  Deseret  Evening  News  of  February  21,  1900,  in 
explaining  this  omission,  says  that  the  report  by  Mormon  of  the  "  discourse  delivered  by 
Jesus  Christ  to  the  Nephites  on  this  continent  after  his  resurrection  from  the  dead  .  .  . 
may  not  be  full  and  complete." 


96  THE    STORY    OF   THE    MORMONS 

"  7.  And  it  came  to  pass  that  as  I  followed  him,  I  beheld  myself  that  I  was 
in  a  dark  and  dreary  waste. 

"8.  And  after  I  had  travelled  for  the  space  of  many  hours  in  darkness,  I 
began  to  pray  unto  the  Lord  that  he  would  have  mercy  on  me,  according  to  the 
multitude  of  his  tender  mercies. 

"9.  And  it  came  to  pass  after  I  had  prayed  unto  the  Lord,  I  beheld  a  large 
and  spacious  field. 

"  10.  And  it  came  to  pass  that  I  beheld  a  tree,  whose  fruit  was  desirable  to 
make  one  happy. 

"11.  And  it  came  to  pass  that  I  did  go  forth,  and  partake  of  the  fruit  thereof; 
and  I  beheld  that  it  was  most  sweet,  above  all  that  I  ever  before  tasted.  Yea, 
and  I  beheld  that  the  fruit  thereof  was  white,  to  exceed  all  the  whiteness  that  I 
had  ever  seen." 

Whole  chapters  of  the  Scriptures  are  incorporated  word  for 
word.  In  the  first  edition  some  of  these  were  appropriated  with- 
out any  credit ;  in  the  Utah  editions  they  are  credited.  Beside 
these,  Hyde  counted  298  direct  quotations  from  the  New  Testa- 
ment, verses  or  sentences,  between  pages  2  to  428,  covering  the 
years  from  600  B.C.  to  Christ's  birth.  Thus,  Nephi  relates  that  his 
father,  more  than  two  thousand  years  before  the  King  James  edi- 
tion of  the  Bible  was  translated,  in  announcing  the  coming  of 
John  the  Baptist,  used  these  words,  "  Yea,  even  he  should  go 
forth  and  cry  in  the  wilderness,  prepare  ye  the  way  of  the  Lord, 
and  make  his  paths  straight;  for  there  standeth  one  among  you 
whom  ye  know  not ;  and  he  is  mightier  than  I,  whose  shoe's 
latchet  I  am  not  worthy  to  unloose"  (1  Nephi  x.  8).  In  Mosiah 
v.  8,  King  Benjamin  is  represented  as  saying,  124  years  before 
Christ  was  born,  "  I  would  that  you  should  take  upon  you  the  name 
of  Christ"  as  "there  is  no  other  name  given  whereby  salvation 
cometh." 

The  first  Nephi  represents  John  as  baptizing  in  Bethabara  (the 
spelling  is  Beathabry  in  the  Utah  edition),  and  Alma  announces 
(vii.  10)  that  "  the  Son  of  God  shall  be  born  of  Mary  at  Jerusa- 
lem." Shakespeare  is  proved  a  plagiarist  by  comparing  his  words 
with  those  of  the  second  Nephi,  who,  speaking  twenty-two  hundred 
years  before  Shakespeare  was  born,  said  (2  Nephi  i.  14),  "  Hear 
the  words  of  a  trembling  parent,  whose  limbs  you  must  soon  lay 
down  in  the  cold  and  silent  grave,  from  whence  no  traveller  can 
return." 

The  chapters  of  the  Scriptures  appropriated  bodily,  and  the 
places  where  they  may  be  found,  are  as  follows:  — 


THE    MORMON    BIBLE 


97 


First  Edition 

Utah  Edition 

Isaiah 

xlviii  and  xlix 

pp.  52  to  56 

i  Nephi,  ch.  xx,  xxi 

Isaiah 

1  and  li      .     . 

pp.  76 

2  Nephi,  ch.  vii 

Isaiah 

Hi    ...     . 

pp.  498 

3  Nephi,  ch.  xx 

Isaiah 

liv  .     .     .     . 

pp.  501,  502 

3  Nephi,  ch.  xx 

Isaiah 

ii  to  xiv    .     . 

pp.  86  to  101 

2  Nephi,  ch.  xii  to  xxiv 

Malachi 

iii,  iv    .     .     . 

pp.  503  to  505 

3  Nephi,  ch.  xxiv,  xxv 

Matthew 

v,  vi,  vii    . 

pp.  479  to  483 

3  Nephi,  ch.  xii  to  xix 

i  Corinth 

ans  xiii .... 

pp.  580 

Moroni,  ch.  vii 

Among  the  many  anachronisms  to  be  found  in  the  book  may 
be  mentioned  the  giving  to  Laban  of  a  sword  with  a  blade  "  of 
the  most  precious  steel  "  (1  Nephi  iv.  9),  centuries  before  the  use 
of  steel  is  elsewhere  recorded,  and  the  possession  of  a  compass  by 
the  Jaredites  when  they  sailed  across  the  ocean  (Alma  xxxvii.  38), 
long  before  the  invention  of  such  an  instrument.  The  ease  with 
which  such  an  error  could  be  explained  is  shown  in  the  anecdote 
related  of  a  Utah  Mormon  who,  when  told  that  the  compass  was 
not  known  in  Bible  times,  responded  by  quoting  Acts  xxviii.  13, 
where  Paul  says,  "  And  from  thence  we  fetched  a  compass." 
When  Nephi  and  his  family  landed  in  Central  America  "  there 
were  beasts  in  the  forest  of  every  kind,  both  the  cow,  and  the  ox, 
and  the  ass,  and  the  horse"  (1  Nephi  xviii.  25).  If  Nephi  does 
not  prevaricate,  there  must  have  been  a  fatal  plague  among  these 
animals  in  later  years,  for  horses,  cows,  and  asses  were  unknown 
in  America  until  after  its  discovery  by  Europeans.  Moroni,  in 
the  Book  of  Ether  (ix.  18,  19),  is  still  more  generous,  adding  to 
the  possessions  of  the  Jaredites  sheep  and  swine  *  and  elephants 
and  "  cureloms  and  cumoms."  Neither  sheep  nor  swine  are  in- 
digenous to  America ;  but  the  prophet  is  safe  as  regards  the 
"cureloms  and  cumoms,"  which  are  animals  of  his  own  creation. 

The  book  is  full  of  incidental  proofs  of  the  fraudulent  profes- 
sion that  it  is  an  original  translation.  For  instance,  in  incorporat- 
ing 1  Corinthians  iii.  4,  in  the  Book  of  Moroni,  the  phrase  "is 
not  easily  provoked "  is  retained,  as  in  the  King  James  edition. 
But  the  word  "  easily  "  is  not  found  in  any  Greek  manuscript  of 
this  verse,  and  it  is  dropped  in  the  Revised  Version  of   1881. 

Stenhouse  calls  attention  to  many  phrases  in  this  Bible  which 
were  peculiar  to  the  revival  preachers  of  those  days,  like  Rigdon, 

1  "And,"  it  is  added,  "many  other  kinds  of  animals  which  were  useful  for  the  use 
of  man,"  thus  ignoring  the  Hebrew  antipathy  to  pork. 
11 


98  THE  STORY  OF  THE  MORMONS 

such  as  "  Have  ye  spiritually  been  born  of  God  ?  "     "  If  ye  have 
experienced  a  change  of  heart." 

The  first  edition  was  full  of  grammatical  errors  and  amusing 
phrases.  Thus  we  are  told,  in  Ether  xv.  31,  that  when  Coriantumr 
smote  off  the  head  of  Shiz,  the  latter  "  raised  upon  his  hands 
and  fell."  Among  other  examples  from  the  first  edition  may  be 
quoted:  "and  I  sayeth  "  ;  "all  things  which  are  good  cometh  of 
God  "  ;  "  neither  doth  his  angels  "  ;  and  "  hath  miracles  ceased." 
We  find  in  Helaman  ix.  6,  "  He  being  stabbed  by  his  brother  by  a 
garb  of  secrecy."     This  remains  uncorrected. 

Alexander  Campbell,  noting  the  mixture  of  doctrines  in  the 
book,  says,  "  He  [the  author]  decides  all  the  great  controversies 
[discussed  in  New  York  in  the  last  ten  years],  infant  baptism,  the 
Trinity,  regeneration,  repentance,  justification,  the  fall  of  man,  the 
atonement,  transubstantiation,  fasting,  penance,  church  govern- 
ment, the  call  to  the  ministry,  the  general  resurrection,  eternal 
punishment,  who  may  baptize,  and  even  the  questions  of  Free- 
masonry, republican  government  and  the  rights  of  man."  1 

Such  is  the  book  which  is  accepted  to  this  day  as  an  inspired 
work  by  the  thousands  of  persons  who  constitute  the  Mormon 
church.  This  acceptance  has  always  been  rightfully  recognized 
as  fundamentally  necessary  to  the  Mormon  faith.  Orson  Pratt 
declared,  "  The  nature  of  the  message  in  the  Book  of  Mormon  is 
such  that,  if  true,  none  can  be  saved  who  reject  it,  and,  if  false,  none 
can  be  saved  who  receive  it."  Brigham  Young  told  the  Confer- 
ence at  Nauvoo  in  October,  1844,  that  "  Every  spirit  that  confesses 
that  Joseph  Smith  is  a  prophet,  that  he  lived  and  died  a  prophet, 
and  that  the  Book  of  Mormon  is  true,  is  of  God,  and  every  spirit 
that  does  not  is  of  Anti-Christ."  There  is  no  modification  of  this 
view  in  the  Mormon  church  of  to-day. 

1  "  Delusions :  an  Analysis  of  the  Book  of  Mormon  "  (1832).  An  exhaustive  exami- 
nation of  this  Bible  will  be  found  in  the  "  Braden  and  Kelley  Public  Discussion." 


CHAPTER   XII 

ORGANIZATION   OF   THE   CHURCH 

The  director  of  the  steps  taken  to  announce  to  the  world  a  new- 
Bible  and  a  new  church  realized,  of  course,  that  there  must  be 
priests,  under  some  name,  to  receive  members  and  to  dispense  its 
blessing.  No  person  openly  connected  with  Smith  in  the  work 
of  translation  had  been  a  clergyman.  Accordingly,  on  May  15, 
1829  (still  following  the  prophet's  own  account),  while  Smith  and 
Cowdery  were  yet  busy  with  the  work  of  translation,  they  went 
into  the  woods  to  ask  the  Lord  for  fuller  information  about  the 
baptism  mentioned  in  the  plates.  There  a  messenger  from  heaven, 
who,  it  was  learned,  was  John  the  Baptist,  appeared  to  them  in  a 
cloud  of  light,  "  and  having  laid  his  hands  on  us,  he  ordained  us, 
saying  unto  us,  '  Upon  you,  my  fellow  servants,  in  the  name  of 
Messiah,  I  confer  the  priesthood  of  Aaron,  which  holds  the  keys 
of  the  ministering  angels,  and  of  the  Gospel  of  repentance,  and 
of  baptism  by  immersion  for  the  remission  of  sins.'  "  The  mes- 
senger also  informed  them  that  "  the  power  of  laying  on  of  hands 
for  the  gift  of  the  Holy  Ghost"  would  be  conferred  on  them  later, 
through  Peter,  James,  and  John,  "  who  held  the  keys  of  the  priest- 
hood of  Melchisedec  "  ;  but  he  directed  Smith  to  baptize  Cowdery, 
and  Cowdery  then  to  perform  the  same  office  for  Smith.  This  they 
did  at  once,  and  as  soon  as  Cowdery  came  out  of  the  water  he 
"stood  up  and  prophesied  many  things"  (which  the  prophet  pru- 
dently omitted  to  record).  The  divine  authority  thus  conferred, 
according  to  Orson  Pratt,  exceeds  that  of  the  bishops  of  the  Roman 
church,  because  it  came  direct  from  heaven,  and  not  through  a  suc- 
cession of  popes  and  bishops.1 

1  Orson  Pratt,  in  his  "Questions  and  Answers  on  Doctrine"  in  his  Washington 
newspaper,  the  Seer  (p.  205),  thus  defined  the  Mormon  view  of  the  Roman  Catholic 
church : — 

99 


/ 


TOO  THE    STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

Smith  and  Cowdery  at  once  began  telling  of  the  power  con- 
ferred upon  them,  and  giving  their  relatives  and  friends  an  oppor- 
tunity to  become  members  of  the  new  church.  Smith's  brother 
Samuel  was  the  first  convert  won  over,  Cowdery  baptizing  him. 
His  brother  Hyrum  came  next,1  and  then  one  J.  Knight,  Sr.,  of 
Coles ville,  New  York.2  Each  new  convert  was  made  the  subject 
of  a  "  revelation,"  each  of  which  began,  "  A  great  and  marvelous 
work  is  about  to  come  forth  among  the  children  of  men."  Hyrum 
Smith,  and  David  and  Peter  Whitmer,  Jr.,  were  baptized  in  Seneca 
Lake  in  June,  and  "  from  this  time  forth,"  says  Smith,  "  many 
became  believers  and  were  baptized,  while  we  continued  to  in- 
struct and  persuade  as  many  as  applied  for  information." 

By  April  6,  1830,  branches  of  the  new  church  had  been 
established  at  Fayette,  Manchester,  and  Colesville,  New  York, 
with  some  seventy  members  in  all,  it  has  been  stated.  Section  20 
of  the  "Doctrine  and  Covenants"  names  April  6,  1830,  as  the 
date  on  which  the  church  was  "  regularly  organized  and  estab- 
lished, agreeable  to  the  laws  of  our  country."  This  date  has 
been  incorrectly  given  as  that  on  which  the  first  step  was  taken  to 
form  a  church  organization.  What  was  done  then  was  to  organize  in 
a  form  which,  they  hoped,  would  give  the  church  a  standing  as  a 
legal  body.3  The  meeting  was  held  at  the  house  of  Peter  Whit- 
mer. Smith,  who,  it  was  revealed,  should  be  the  first  elder, 
ordained  Cowdery,  and  Cowdery  subsequently  ordained  Smith. 
The  sacrament  was  then  administered,  and  the  new  elders  laid 
their  hands  on  the  others  present. 

"  The  revelation  "  (Sec.  20)  on  the  form  of  church  government 
is  dated  April,   1830,  at  least  six  months  before  Rigdon's  name 

Q.  "  Is  the  Roman  Catholic  Church  the  Church  of  Christ  ?  "  A.  "  No,  for  she  has 
no  inspired  priesthood  or  officers." 

Q.  "  After  the  Church  of  Christ  fled  from  earth  to  heaven  what  was  left  ?  "  .-/.  "  A 
set  of  wicked  apostates,  murderers  and  idolaters,"  etc. 

Q.  "  Who  founded  the  Roman  Catholic  Church  ?"  A.  "The  devil,  through  the 
medium  of  the  apostates,  who  subverted  the  whole  order  of  God  by  denying  immediate 
revelation,  and  substituting  in  place  thereof  tradition  and  ancient  revelations  as  a  suffi- 
cient rule  of  faith  and  practice." 

1  Hyrum  wanted  to  start  in  to  preach  at  once,  and  a  "  revelation  "  was  necessary  to 
inform  him :  "  You  need  not  suppose  you  are  called  to  preach  until  you  are  called.  .  .  . 
Keep  my  commandments  ;  hold  your  peace"  (Sec.  n). 

2  Colesville  is  the  township  in  Broome  County  of  which  Harpursville  is  the  voting 
place.     Smith  organized  his  converts  there  about  two  miles  north  of  Harpursville. 

3  Whitmer's  "Address  to  Believers  in  the  Book  of  Mormon." 


ORGANIZATION   OF   THE   CHURCH  IOI 

was  first  associated  with  the  scheme  by  the  visit  of  Cowdery  and 
his  companions  to  Ohio.  If  the  date  is  correct,  it  shows  that  Rig- 
don  had  forwarded  this  "  revelation  "  to  Smith  for  promulgation,  for 
Rigdon  was  unquestionably  the  originator  of  the  system  of  church 
government.  David  Whitmer  has  explained,  "  Rigdon  would  ex- 
pound the  Old  Testament  Scriptures  of  the  Bible  and  Book  of 
Mormon,  in  his  way,  to  Joseph,  concerning  the  priesthood,  high 
priests,  etc.,  and  would  persuade  Brother  Joseph  to  inquire  of  the 
Lord  about  this  doctrine  and  about  that  doctrine,  and  of  course 
a  revelation  would  always  come  just  as  they  desired  it."  * 

The  "revelation"  now  announced  defined  the  duty  of  elders, 
priests,  teachers,  deacons,  and  members  of  the  Church  of  Christ. 
An  apostle  was  an  elder,  and  it  was  his  calling  to  baptize,  ordain, 
administer  the  sacrament,  confirm,  preach,  and  take  the  lead  in  all 
meetings.  A  priest's  duty  was  to  preach,  baptize,  administer  the 
sacrament,  and  visit  members  at  their  houses.  Teachers  and  dea- 
cons could  not  baptize,  administer  the  sacrament,  or  lay  on  hands, 
but  were  to  preach  and  invite  all  to  join  the  church.  The  elders 
were  directed  to  meet  in  conference  once  in  three  months,  and 
there  was  to  be  a  High  Council,  or  general  conference  of  the 
church,  by  which  should  be  ordained  every  President  of  the  high 
priesthood,  bishop,  high  counsellor,  and  high  priest. 

Smith's  leadership  had,  before  this,  begun  to  manifest  itself. 
He  had,  in  a  generous  mood,  originally  intended  to  share  with 
others  the  honor  of  receiving  "  revelations,"  the  first  of  these  in 
'the  "Book  of  Doctrine  and  Covenants,"  saying,  "I  the  Lord  also 
gave  commandments  to  others,  that  they  should  proclaim  these 
things  to  the  world."  In  the  original  publication  of  these  "  reve- 
lations," under  the  title  "  Book  of  Commandments,"  we  find  such 
headings  as,  "  A  revelation  given  to  Oliver,"  "  A  revelation  given 
to  Hyrum,"  etc.  These  headings  are  all  changed  in  the  modern 
edition  to  read,  "  Given  through  Joseph  the  Seer,"  etc. 

Cowdery  was  the  first  of  his  associates  to  seek  an  open  share 
in  the  divine  work.  Smith  was  so  pleased  with  his  new  scribe 
when  they  first  met  at  Harmony,  Pennsylvania,  that  he  at  once 
received  a  "  revelation  "  which  incited  Cowdery  to  ask  for  a  divi- 
sion of  power.  Cowdery  was  told  (Sec.  6),  "  And  behold,  I  grant 
unto  you  a  gift,  if  you  desire  of  me,  to  translate  even  as  my  ser- 

1  Whitmer's  "  Address  to  Believers  in  the  Book  of  Mormon." 


102  THE   STORY   OF  THE   MORMONS 

vant  Joseph."  Cowdery's  desire  manifested  itself  immediately, 
and  Joseph  almost  as  quickly  became  conscious  that  he  had  com- 
mitted himself  too  soon.  Accordingly,  in  another  "  revelation," 
dated  the  same  month  of  April,  1829  (Sec.  8),  he  attempted  to 
cajole  Oliver  by  telling  him  about  a  "  gift  of  Aaron  "  which  he 
possessed,  and  which  was  a  remarkable  gift  in  itself,  adding,  "  Do 
not  ask  for  that  which  you  ought  not."  But  Cowdery  naturally 
clung  to  his  promised  gift,  and  kept  on  asking,  and  he  had  to  be 
told  right  away  in  still  another  "  revelation  "  (Sec.  9),  that  he  had 
not  understood,  but  that  he  must  not  murmur,  since  his  work  was 
to  write  for  Joseph.  If  he  was  in  doubt  about  a  subject,  he  was 
advised  to  "  study  it  out  in  your  mind  " ;  and  if  it  was  right,  the 
Lord  promised,  "  I  will  cause  that  your  bosom  shall  burn  within 
you  "  ;  but  if  it  was  not  right,  "  you  shall  have  a  stupor  of  thought, 
that  shall  cause  you  to  forget  the  thing  which  is  wrong."  To 
assist  him  until  he  became  accustomed  to  discriminate  between 
this  burning  feeling  and  this  stupor,  the  Lord  told  him  very 
plainly,  "  It  is  not  expedient  that  you  should  translate  now." 
That  all  this  rankled  in  Cowdery's  heart  was  shown  by  his 
attempt  to  revise  one  of  Smith's  "revelations,"  and  the  support  he 
gave  to  Hiram  Page's  "gazing." 

Cowdery  continued  to  annoy  the  prophet,  and  Smith  decided  to 
get  rid  of  him.  Accordingly  in  July,  1830,  came  a  "revelation," 
originally  announced  as  given  direct  to  Joseph's  wife  Emma, 
instructing  her  to  act  as  her  husband's  scribe,  "  that  I  may  send 
my  servant  Oliver  Cowdery  whithersoever  I  will."  This  occurred 
on  a  trip  the  Smiths  had  made  to  Harmony.  On  their  return  to 
Fayette,  Smith  found  Cowdery  still  persistent,  and  he  accordingly 
gave  out  a  "  revelation  "  to  him,  telling  him  again  that  he  must  not 
"write  by  way  of  commandment,"  inasmuch  as  Smith  was  at  the 
head  of  the  church,  and  directing  him  to  "  go  unto  the  Lamanites 
(Indians)  and  preach  my  Gospel  unto  them."  This  was  the  first 
mention  of  the  westward  movement  of  the  church  which  shaped 
all  its  later  history. 

A  "revelation"  in  June,  1829  (Sec.  18),  had  directed  the 
appointment  of  the  twelve  apostles,  whom  Cowdery  and  David 
Whitmer  were  to  select.  The  organized  members  now  began  to 
inquire  who  was  their  leader,  and  Smith,  in  a  "  revelation  "  dated 
April  6,  1830  (Sec.  21),  addressed  to  himself,  announced  :  "  Behold 


ORGANIZATION   OF   THE   CHURCH 


103 


there  shall  be  a  record  kept  among  you,  and  in  it  thou  shalt  be 
called  a  seer,  a  translator,  a  prophet,  an  apostle  of  Jesus  Christ, 
an  elder  of  the  church  through  the  will  of  God  the  Father,  and  the 
grace  of  your  Lord  Jesus  Christ " ;  and  the  church  was  directed  " 
in  these  words,  "  For  his  word  ye  shall  receive,  as  if  from  mine 
own  mouth,  in  all  patience  and  faith."  Thus  was  established  an 
authority  which  Smith  defended  until  the  day  of  his  death,  and 
before  which  all  who  questioned  it  went  down. 

Some  of  the  few  persons  who  at  this  time  expressed  a  willing- 
ness to  join  the  new  church  showed  a  repugnance  to  being  baptized 
at  his  hands,  and  pleaded  previous  baptism  as  an  excuse  for  evad- 
ing it.  But  Smith's  tyrannical  power  manifested  itself  at  once,  and 
he  straightway  announced  a  "revelation"  (Sec.  22),  in  which  the 
Lord  declared,  "  All  old  covenants  have  I  caused  to  be  done  away 
in  this  thing,  and  this  is  a  new  and  everlasting  covenant,  even  that 
which  was  from  the  beginning." 

Five  days  after  the  formal  organization,  the  first  sermon  to  the 
Mormon  church  was  preached  in  the  Whitmer  house  by  Oliver 
Cowdery,  Smith  probably  concluding  that  it  would  be  wiser  to 
confine  himself  to  the  receipt  of  "revelations"  rather  than  to 
essay  pulpit  oratory  too  soon.  §ix  additional  persons  were  then 
baptized.  Soon  after  this  the  first  Mormon  miracle  was  per- 
formed—  the  casting  out  of  a  devil  from  a  young  man  named 
Newel  Knight. 

The  first  conference  of  the  organized  church  was  held  at  Fay- 
/  ette,  New  York,  in  June,  1830,  with  about  thirty  members  present. 
In  recent  "  revelations  "  the  prophet  had  informed  his  father  and 
his  brothers  Hyrum  and  Samuel  that  their  calling  was  "  to  exhor- 
tation and  to  strengthen  the  church,"  so  that  they  were  provided 
for  in  the  new  fold. 

The  region  in  New  York  State  where  the  Smiths  had  lived 
and  were  well  known  was  not  favorable  ground  for  their  labors 
as  church  officers,  conducting  baptisms  and  administering  the 
sacrament.  When  they  dammed  a  small  stream  in  order  to  secure 
a  pool  for  an  announced  baptism,  the  dam  was  destroyed  during  / 
the  night.  A  Presbyterian  sister-in-law  of  Knight,  from  whom  a  \ 
devil  had  been  cast,  announced  her  conversion  to  Smith's  church, 
and,  when  she  would  not  listen  to  the  persuasions  of  her  pastor, 
the  latter  obtained  legal  authority  from  her  parents  and  carried 


104 


THE    STORY    OF   THE   MORMONS 


her  away  by  force.  She  succeeded,  however,  in  securing  the 
wished-for  baptism.  All  this  stirred  up  public  feeling  against 
Smith,  and  he  was  arrested  on  a  charge  of  disorderly  conduct. 

At  the  trial,  testimony  was  offered  to  show  that  he  had  obtained 
a  horse  and  a  yoke  of  oxen  from  his  dupes,  on  the  statement  that 
a  "  revelation  "  had  informed  him  that  he  was  to  have  them,  and 
that  he  had  behaved  improperly  toward  the  daughters  of  one  of 
these  men.  But  the  parties  interested  all  testified  in  his  favor, 
and  the  prosecution  failed.  He  was  immediately  rearrested  on  a 
warrant  and  removed  to  Colesville,  amid  the  jeers  of  the  people 
in  attendance.  Knight  was  subpoenaed  to  tell  about  the  miracle 
performed  on  him,  and  Smith's  old  character  of  a  money-digger 
was  ventilated  ;  but  the  court  found  nothing  on  which  to  hold  him. 
Mormon  writers  have  dilated  on  these  "  persecutions,"  but  the  out- 
come of  the  hearings  indicated  fair  treatment  of  the  accused  by 
the  arbiters  of  the  law,  and  the  indignation  shown  toward  him  and 
his  associates  by  their  neighbors  was  not  greater  than  the  conduct 
of  such  men  in  assuming  priestly  rights  might  evoke  in  any  similar 
community. 

Smith  returned  to  his  home  in  Pennsylvania  after  this,  and 
endeavored  to  secure  the  cooperation  of  his  father-in-law  in  his 
church  plans,  but  without  avail.  It  was  four  years  later  that  Mr. 
Hale  put  on  record  his  opinion  of  his  son-in-law  already  quoted. 
Failing  to  find  other  support  in  Harmony,  and  perceiving  much 
public  feeling  against  him,  Smith  prepared  for  his  return  to  New 
York  by  receiving  a  "  revelation  "  (Sec.  24),  which  directed  him  to 
return  to  the  churches  organized  in  that  state  after  he  had  sold 
his  crops.  "They  shall  support  thee,"  declared  the  "revelation"; 
"but  if  they  receive  thee  not,  I  will  send  upon  them  a  cursing 
instead  of  a  blessing."  For  Smith's  protection  the  Lord  further 
declared :  "  Whosoever  shall  lay  their  hand  upon  you  by  violence 
ye  shall  command  to  be  smitten  in  my  name,  and  behold,  I  will 
smite  them  according  to  your  words,  in  mine  own  due  time.  And 
/whosoever  shall  go  to  law  with  thee  shall  be  cursed  by  the  law." 
This  threat,  it  will  be  noted,  was  safeguarded  by  not  requiring 
immediate  fulfilment. 

Smith  returned  to  Fayette  in  September,  and  continued  church 
work  thereabouts  in  company  with  his  brothers  and  John  and 
David  Whitmer. 


ORGANIZATION   OP'   THE   CHURCH  105 

Meanwhile  Parley  P.  Pratt  had  made  his  visit  to  Palmyra  and 
returned  to  Ohio,  and  in  the  early  winter  Rigdon  set  out  to  make 
his  first  open  visit  to  Smith,  arriving  in  December.  Martin 
Harris,  on  the  ground  that  Rigdon  was  a  regularly  authorized 
clergyman,  tried  to  obtain  the  use  of  one  of  the  churches  of  the 
town  for  him,  but  had  to  content  himself  with  the  third-story  hall 
of  the  Young  Men's  Association.  There  Rigdon  preached  a 
sermon  to  a  small  audience,  principally  of  non-Mormons,  announc- 
ing himself  as  "a  messenger  of  God."  The  audience  regarded 
the  sermon  as  blasphemous,  and  no  further  attempt  was  made  to 
secure  this  room  for  Mormon  meetings.  Rigdon,  however,  while 
in  conference  with  Smith,  preached  and  baptized  in  the  neighbor- 
hood, and  Smith  and  Harris  tried  their  powers  as  preachers  in 
barns  and  under  a  tree  in  the  open  air. 

A  well-authenticated  story  of  the  manner  in  which  one  of  the 
Palmyra  Mormons  received  his  call  to  preach  is  told  by  Tucker  1 
and  verified  by  the  principal  actor.  Among  the  first  baptized  in 
New  York  State  were  Calvin  Stoddard  and  his  wife  (Smith's 
sister)  of  Macedon.  Stoddard  told  his  neighbors  of  wonderful 
things  he  had  seen  in  the  sky,  and  about  his  duty  to  preach. 
One  night  Steven  S.  Harding,  a  young  man  who  was  visiting  the 
place,  went  with  a  companion  to  Stoddard's  house,  and  awakening 
him  with  knocks  on  the  door,  proclaimed  in  measured  tones  that 
the  angel  of  the  Lord  commanded  him  to  "  go  forth  among  the 
people  and  preach  the  Gospel  of  Nephi."  Then  they  ran  home 
and  went  to  bed.  Stoddard  took  the  call  in  all  earnestness,  and 
went  about  the  next  day  repeating  to  his  neighbors  the  words  of 
the  "celestial  messenger,"  describing  the  roaring  thunder  and  the 
musical  sounds  of  the  angel's  wings  that  accompanied  the  words. 
Young  Harding,  who  participated  in  this  joke,  became  Governor 
of  Utah  in  1862,  and  incurred  the  bitter  enmity  of  Brigham  Young 
and  the  church  by  denouncing  polygamy,  and  asserting  his  own 
civil  authority.2 

As  a  result  of  Smith's  and  Rigdon's  conferences  came  a 
"revelation"  to  them  both  (Sec.  35),  delivered  as  in  the   name 

1  "Origin,  Rise,  and  Progress  of  Mormonism,"  pp.  80,  285. 

2  Stoddard  and  Smith  had  a  quarrel  over  a  lot  in  Kirtland  in  1835,  and  Smith 
knocked  down  his  brother-in-law  and  was  indicted  for  assault  and  battery,  but  was 
acquitted  on  the  ground  of  self-defence. 


106  THE    STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

of  Jesus  Christ,  denning  somewhat  Rigdon's  position.  How 
nearly  it  met  his  demands  cannot  be  learned,  but  it  certainly 
granted  him  no  more  authority  than  Smith  was  willing  to  concede. 
It  told  him  that  he  should  do  great  things,  conferring  the  Holy 
Ghost  by  the  laying  on  of  hands,  as  did  the  apostles  of  old,  and 
promising  to  show  miracles,  signs,  and  wonders  unto  all  believers. 
He  was  told  that  Joseph  had  received  the  "  keys  of  the  mysteries 
of  those  things  that  have  been  sealed,"  and  was  directed  to 
"watch  over  him  that  his  faith  fail  not."  This  "revelation" 
ordered  the  retranslation  of  the  Scriptures. 

The  most  important  result  of  Rigdon's  visit  to  Smith  was  a 
decision  to  move  the  church  to  Ohio.  This  decision  was  promul- 
gated in  the  form  of  "revelations"  dated  December,  1830,  and 
January,  1831,  which  set  forth  (Sees.  37,  38):  — 

"And  that  ye  might  escape  the  power- of  the  enemy,  and  be  gathered  unto 
me  a  righteous  people,  without  spot  and  blameless  : 

"  Wherefore,  for  this  cause  I  give  unto  you  the  commandment  that  ye 
should  go  to  the  Ohio  ;  and  there  I  will  give  unto  you  my  law  ;  and  there  you  shall 
be  endowed  with  power  from  on  high  ;  and  from  thence  whomsoever  I  will  shall  go 
forth  among  all  nations,  and  it  shall  be  told  them  what  they  shall  do ;  for  I  have 
a  great  work  laid  up  in  store,  for  Israel  shall  be  saved.  .  .  .  And  they  that  have 
farms  that  cannot  be  sold,  let  them  be  left  or  rented  as  seemeth  them  good." 

A  sufficient  reason  for  the  removal  was  the  failure  to  secure 
converts  where  Smith  was  known,  and  the  ready  acceptance  of 
the  new  belief  among  Rigdon's  Ohio  people.  The  Rev.  Dr. 
Clark  says,  "  You  might  as  well  go  down  in  the  crater  of  Vesu- 
vius and  attempt  to  build  an  icehouse  amid  its  molten  and  boiling 
lava,  as  to  convince  any  inhabitant  in  either  of  these  towns  [Pal- 
myra or  Manchester]  that  Joe  Smith's  pretensions  are  not  the 
most  gross  and  egregious  falsehood."1 

The  Rev.  Jesse  Townsend  of  Palmyra,  in  a  reply  to  a  letter 
of  inquiry  about  the  Mormons,  dated  December  24,  1833  (quoted 
in  full  by  Tucker),  says :  "  All  the  Mormons  have  left  this  part 
of  the  state,  and  so  palpable  is  their  imposture  that  nothing  is 
here  said  or  thought  of  the  subject,  except  when  inquiries  from 
abroad  are  occasionally  made  concerning  them.  I  know  of  no 
one  now  living  in  this  section  of  the  country  that  ever  gave  them 
credence." 

1  "  Gleanings  by  the  Way." 


CHAPTER  XIII 

THE  MORMONS'  BELIEFS  AND  DOCTRINES —  CHURCH 
GOVERNMENT 

The  Mormons  teach  that,  for  fourteen  hundred  years  to  the 
time  of  Smith's  "  revelations,"  there  had  been  "  a  general  and 
awful  apostasy  from  the  religion  of  the  New  Testament,  so  that 
all  the  known  world  have  been  left  for  centuries  without  the  Church 
of  Christ  among  them ;  without  a  priesthood  authorized  of  God  to 
administer  ordinances;  that  every  one  of  the  churches  has  per- 
verted the  Gospel."  J  As  illustrations  of  this  perversion  are  cited 
the  doing  away  of  immersion  for  the  remission  of  sins  by  most 
churches,  of  the  laying  on  of  hands  for  the  gift  of  the  Holy  Ghost, 
and  of  the  miraculous  gifts  and  powers  of  the  Holy  Spirit.  The 
new  church  presented  a  modern  prophet,  who  was  in  direct  com- 
munication with  God  and  possessed  power  to  work  miracles,  and 
who  taught  from  a  Golden  Bible  which  says  that  whoever  asserts 
that  there  are  no  longer  "  revelations,  nor  prophecies,  nor  gifts, 
nor  healing,  nor  speaking  with  tongues  and  the  interpretation  of 
tongues,  .  .  .  knoweth  not  the  Gospel  of  Christ"  (Book  of  Mor- 
mon ix.  7,  8). 

It  is  impossible  to  decide  whether  the  name  "  Mormon  "  was 
used  by  Spaulding  in  his  "  Manuscript  Found,"  or  was  introduced 
by  Rigdon.  It  is  first  encountered  in  the  Mormon  Bible  in  the 
Book  of  Mosiah  xviii.  4,  as  the  name  of  a  place  where  there 
was  a  fountain  in  which  Alma  baptized  those  whom  his  admoni- 
tion led  to  repentance.  Next  it  occurs  in  3  Nephi  v.  20 :  "I 
am  Mormon,  and  a  pure  descendant  of  Lehi."  This  Mormon  was 
selected  by  the  "  author  "  of  the  Bible  to  stand  sponsor  for  the 
condensation  of  the  "records"  of  his  ancestors  which  Smith  un- 
earthed. It  was  discovered  very  soon  after  the  organization  of 
the  Mormon  church  was  announced  that  the  word  was  of  Greek 

1  Orson  Pratt's  "  Remarkable  Visions,"  No.  6. 
107 


IOS  THE   STORY    OF   THE   MORMONS 

derivation,  fiopfico  or  fxop/j,cov,  meaning  bugbear,  hobgoblin.  In 
the  form  of  "mormo"  it  is  Anglicized  with  the  same  meaning,  and 
is  used  by  Jeremy  Collier  and  Warburton.1  The  word  "  Mormon  " 
in  zoology  is  the  generic  name  of  certain  animals,  including  the 
mandril  baboon.  The  discovery  of  the  Greek  origin  and  mean- 
ing of  the  word  was  not  pleasing  to  the  early  Mormon  leaders,  and 
they  printed  in  the  Times  and  Seasons  a  letter  over  Smith's  signa- 
ture, in  which  he  solemnly  declared  that  "  there  was  no  Greek  or 
Latin  upon  the  plates  from  which  I,  through  the  grace  of  God, 
translated  the  Book  of  Mormon,"  and  gave  the  following  explana- 
tion of  the  derivation  of  the  word :  — 

"  Before  I  give  a  definition  to  the  word,  let  me  say  that  the  Bible,  in  its  widest 
sense,  means  good ;  for  the  Saviour  says,  according  to  the  Gospel  of  St.  John, 
'  I  am  the  Good  Shepherd '  ;  and  it  will  not  be  beyond  the  common  use  of  terms 
to  say  that  good  is  amongst  the  most  important  in  use,  and,  though  known  by 
various  names  in  different  languages,  still  its  meaning  is  the  same,  and  is  ever  in 
opposition  to  bad.  We  say  from  the  Saxon,  good;  the  Dane,  god;  the  Goth, 
goda;  the  German,  £?// ;  the  Dutch,  goed;  the  Latin,  bonus;  the  Greek,  kalos ; 
the  Hebrew,  tob ;  the  Egyptian,  mo.  Hence,  with  the  addition  of  more,  or  the 
contraction  mor,  we  have  the  word  Mormon,  which  means  literally  more  good.'1'' 

This  lucid  explanation  was  doubtless  entirely  satisfactory  to 
the  persons  to  whom  it  was  addressed. 

In  the  early  "  revelations "  collected  in  the  "  Book  of  Com- 
mandments "  the  new  church  was  not  styled  anything  more  defi- 
nite than  "  My  Church,"  and  the  title-page  of  that  book,  as  printed 
in  1833,  says  that  these  instructions  are  "for  the  government  of 
the  Church  of  Christ."  The  name  "  Mormons  "  was  not  acceptable 
to  the  early  followers  of  Smith,  who  looked  on  it  as  a  term  of  re- 
proach, claiming  the  designation  "  Saints."  This  objection  to  the 
title  continues  to  the  present  day.  It  was  not  until  May  4,  1834, 
that  a  council  of  the  church,  on  motion  of  Sidney  Rigdon,  decided 
on  its  present  official  title,  "  Church  of  Jesus  Christ  of  Latter-Day 
Saints." 

The  belief  in  the  speedy  ending  of  the  world,  on  which  the  title 
"  Latter-Day  Saints  "  was  founded,  has  played  so  unimportant  a 
part  in  modern  Mormon  belief  that  its  prominence  as  an  early  tenet 
of  the  church  is  generally  overlooked.  At  no  time  was  there  more 
widespread  interest  in  the  speedy  second  coming  of  Christ  and  the 

1  See  "  Century  Dictionary." 


BELIEFS   AND   DOCTRINES —CHURCH    GOVERNMENT      109 

Day  of  Judgment  than  during  the  years  when  the  organization  of  f 
the  Mormon  church  was  taking  place.  We  have  seen  how  much 
attention  was  given  to  a  speedy  millennium  by  the  Disciples  preach- 
ers. It  was  in  1833  that  William  Miller  began  his  sermons  in  which 
he  fixed  on  the  year  1843  as  the  end  of  the  world,  and  his  views 
not  only  found  acceptance  among  his  personal  followers,  but 
attracted  the  liveliest  interest  in  other  sects. 

The  Mormon  leaders  made  this  belief  a  part  of  their  early  doc- 
trine. Thus,  in  one  of  the  first  "  revelations  "  given  out  by  Smith, 
dated  Fayette,  New  York,  September,  1830,  Christ  is  represented 
as  saying  that  "  the  hour  is  nigh  "  when  He  would  reveal  Himself, 
and  "dwell  in  righteousness  with  men  on  earth  a  thousand  years." 
In  the  November  following,  another  "  revelation "  declared  that 
"  the  time  is  soon  at  hand  that  I  shall  come  in  a  cloud,  with  power 
and  great  glory."  Soon  after  Smith  arrived  in  Kirtland  a  "  revela- 
tion," dated  February,  183 1,  announced  that  "the  great  day  of  the 
Lord  is  nigh  at  hand."  In  January,  1833,  Smith  predicted  that 
"  there  are  those  now  living  upon  the  earth  whose  eyes  shall  not  be 
closed  in  death  until  they  shall  see  all  these  things  of  which  I  have 
spoken  "  (the  sweeping  of  the  wicked  from  the  United  States,  and 
the  return  of  the  lost  tribes  to  it).  Smith  declared  in  1843  that  the 
Lord  had  promised  that  he  should  see  the  Son  of  Man  if  he  lived 
to  be  eighty-five  (Sec.  130).1  When  Ferris  was  Secretary  of  Utah 
Territory,  in  1852-185 3,  he  found  that  the  Mormons  were  still 
expecting  the  speedy  coming  of  Christ,  but  had  moved  the  date 
forward  to  1870.  All  through  Smith's  autobiography  and  the 
Millennial  Star  will  be  found  mention  of  every  portent  that  might 
be  construed  as  an  indication  of  the  coming  disruption  of  this  world. 
As  late  as  December  6,  1856,  an  editorial  in  the  Millennial  Star 
said,  "The  signs  of  the  times  clearly  indicate  to  every  observing 
mind  that  the  great  day  of  the  second  advent  of  Messiah  is  at 
hand." 

As  the  devout  Mohammedan  2  passes  from  earth  to  a  heaven  of 

1  Speaking  of  W.  W.  Phelps's  last  years  in  Utah,  Stenhouse  says :  "  Often  did  the 
old  man,  in  public  and  in  private,  regale  the  Saints  with  the  assurance  that  he  had  the 
promise  by  revelation  that  he  should  not  taste  of  death  until  Jesus  came."  Phelps  died 
on  March  7,  1872. 

2  The  similarity  between  Smith's  early  life  and  visions  and  Mohammed's  has  been 
mentioned  by  more  than  one  writer.  Stenhouse  observes  that  Smith's  mother  "was  to 
him  what  Cadijah  was  to  Mohammed,"  and  that  "a  Mohammedan  writer,  in  a  series  of 


IIO  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

material  bliss,  so  the  Mormons  are  taught  that  the  Saints,  the  sole 
survivors  of  the  day  of  judgment,  will,  with  resurrected  bodies, 
possess  the  purified  earth.  The  lengths  to  which  Mormon  preach- 
ers have  dared  to  go  in  illustrating  this  view  find  a  good  illustra- 
tion in  a  sermon  by  Orson  Pratt,  printed  in  the  Deseret  News,  Salt 
Lake  City,  of  August  21,  1852.  Having  promised  that  "farmers 
will  have  great  farms  upon  the  earth  when  it  is  so  changed,"  and 
foreseeing  that  some  one  might  suggest  a  difficulty  in  providing 
land  enough  to  go  round,  he  met  that  in  this  way :  — 

"  But  don't  be  so  fast,  says  one ;  don't  you  know  that  there  are  only  about 
197,000,000  of  square  miles,  or  about  126,000,000,000  of  acres  upon  the  surface 
of  the  globe  ?  Will  these  accommodate  all  the  inhabitants  after  the  resurrection? 
Yes ;  for  if  the  earth  should  stand  8000  years,  or  80  centuries,  and  the  popula- 
tion should  be  a  thousand  millions  in  every  century,  that  would  be  80,000,- 
000,000  of  inhabitants,  and  we  know  that  many  centuries  have  passed  that  would 
not  give  the  tenth  part  of  this  ;  but  supposing  this  to  be  the  number,  there  would 
then  be  over  an  acre  and  a  half  for  each  person  upon  the  surface  of  the  globe." 

By  eliminating  the  wicked,  so  that  only  one  out  of  a  hundred 
would  share  this  real  estate,  he  calculated  that  every  Saint 
"would  receive  over  150  acres,  which  would  be  quite  enough  to 
raise  manna,  flax  to  make  robes  of,  and  to  have  beautiful  orchards 
of  fruit  trees." 

The  Mormon  belief  is  stated  by  the  church  leaders  to  rest  on 
the  Holy  Bible,  the  Mormon  Bible,  and  the  "  Book  of  Doctrine  and 
Covenants,"  together  with  the  teachings  of  the  Mormon  instructors 
from  Smith's  time  to  the  present  day.  Although  the  Holy  Bible  is 
named  first  in  this  list,  it  has,  as  we  have  seen,  played  a  secondary 
part  in  the  church  ritual,  its  principal  use  by  the  Mormon  preach- 
ers having  been  to  furnish  quotations  on  which  to  rest  their  claims 
for  the  inspiration  of  their  own  Bible  and  for  their  peculiar  teach- 
ings. Mormon  sermons  (usually  styled  discourses)  rarely,  if  ever, 
begin  with  a  text.  The  "Book  of  Doctrine  and  Covenants"  "con- 
taining," as  the  title-page  declares,  "the  revelations  given  to 
Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  for  the  building  up  of  the  Kingdom  of  God  in 
the  last  days,"  was  the  directing  authority  in  the  church  during 
Smith's  life,  and  still  occupies  a  large  place  in  the  church  history. 
An  examination  of  the  origin  and  character  of  this  work  will  there- 
essays  recently  published  in  London,  treats  of  the  prophecies  concerning  the  Arabian 
Prophet,  to  be  found  in  the  Old  and  New  Testaments,  precisely  as  Orson  Pratt  applied 
them  to  the  American  Prophet." 


BELIEFS   AND   DOCTRINES  — CHURCH   GOVERNMENT      ill 

fore  shed  much  light  on  the  claims  of  the  church  to  special  direc- 
tion from  on  high. 

There  is  little  doubt  that  this  system  of  "revelation  "  was  an 
idea  of  Rigdon.  Smith  was  not,  at  that  time,  an  inventor ;  his 
forte  was  making  use  of  ideas  conveyed  to  him.  Thus,  he  did  not 
originate  the  idea  of  using  a  "  peek-stone,"  but  used  one  freely  as 
soon  as  he  heard  of  it.  He  did  not  conceive  the  idea  of  receiving 
a  Bible  from  an  angel,  but  readily  transformed  the  Spaniard-with- 
his-throat-cut  to  an  angel  when  the  perfected  scheme  was  pre- 
sented to  him.  We  can  imagine  how  attractive  "revelations" 
would  have  been  to  him,  and  how  soon  he  would  concentrate  in 
himself  the  power  to  receive  them,  and  would  adapt  them  to  his 
personal  use. 

David  Whitmer  says,  "  The  revelations,  or  the  Book  of  Com- 
mandments, up  to  June,  1829,  were  given  through  the  stone 
through  which  the  Book  of  Mormon  was  translated  "  ;  but  that 
after  that  time  "  they  came  through  Joseph  as  a  mouthpiece  ;  that 
is,  he  would  inquire  of  the  Lord,  pray  and  ask  concerning  a  matter, 
and  speak  out  the  revelation,  which  he  thought  to  be  a  revelation 
from  the  Lord ;  but  sometimes  he  was  mistaken  about  its  being 
from  the  Lord."1  Who  drew  the  line  between  truth  and  error  has 
never  been  explained,  but  Smith  would  certainly  have  resented  any 
such  scepticism. 

Parley  P.  Pratt  thus  describes  Smith's  manner  of  receiving 
"  revelations "  in  Ohio,  "  Each  sentence  was  uttered  slowly  and 
very  distinctly,  and  with  a  pause  between  each  sufficiently  long  for 
it  to  be  recorded  by  an  ordinary  writer  in  long  hand."  2 

These  "  revelations  "  made  the  greatest  impression  on  Smith's 
followers,  and  no  other  of  his  pretensions  seems  to  have  so  con- 
vinced them  of  his  divine  credentials.  The  story  of  Vienna  Jaques 
well  illustrates  this.  A  Yankee  descendant  of  John  Rodgers,  living 
in  Boston,  she  was  convinced  by  a  Mormon  elder,  and  joined  the 
church  members  while  they  were  in  Kirtland,  taking  with  her  her 
entire  possession,  $1500  in  cash.  This  money,  like  that  of  many 
other  devoted  members,  found  its  way  into  Smith's  hands  —  and 
stayed  there.  But  he  had  taken  her  into  his  family,  and  her  sup- 
port became  burdensome  to  him.     So,  when  the  Saints  were  "  gath- 

1  "  Address  to  Believers  in  the  Book  of  Mormon." 

2  Pratt's  "  Autobiography,"  p.  65. 


112  THE    STORY    OF   THE   MORMONS 

ering  "  in  Missouri,  he  announced  a  "revelation"  in  these  words 
(Sec.  90) :  — 

"  And  again,  verily,  I  [the  Lord]  say  unto  you,  it  is  my  will  that  my  hand- 
maid, Vienna  Jaques,  should  receive  money  to  bear  her  expenses,  and  go  up 
unto  the  land  of  Zion ;  and  the  residue  of  the  money  may  be  consecrated  unto 
me,  and  she  be  rewarded  in  mine  own  due  time.  Verily,  I  say  unto  you,  that  it 
is  meet  in  mine  eyes  that  she  should  go  up  unto  the  land  of  Zion,  and  receive  an 
inheritance  from  the  hand  of  the  Bishop,  that  she  may  settle  down  in  peace,  inas- 
much as  she  is  faithful,  and  not  to  be  idle  in  her  days  from  thenceforth." 

The  confiding  woman  obeyed  without  a  murmur  this  thinly 
concealed  scheme  to  get  rid  of  her,  migrated  with  the  church 
from  Missouri  to  Illinois  and  to  Utah,  and  was  in  Salt  Lake  City 
in  1833,  supporting  herself  as  a  nurse,  and  "doubly  proud  that 
she  has  been  made  the  subject  of  a  revelation  from  heaven."  * 

These  "  revelations "  have  been  published  under  two  titles. 
The  first  edition  was  printed  in  Jackson,  Missouri,  in  1833,  in  the 
Mormon  printing  establishment,  under  the  title,  "  Book  of  Com- 
mandments for  the  Government  of  the  Church  of  Christ,  organ- 
ized according  to  Law  on  the  6th  of  April,  1830."  This  edition 
contained  nothing  but  "revelations,"  divided  into  sixty-five  "chap- 
ters," and  ending  with  the  one  dated  Kirtland,  September,  1831, 
which  forms  Section  64  of  the  Utah  edition  of  "  Doctrine  and 
Covenants."  David  Whitmer  says  that  when,  in  the  spring  of 
1832,  it  was  proposed  by  Smith,  Rigdon,  and  others  to  publish 
these  revelations,  they  were  earnestly  advised  by  other  members 
of  the  church  not  to  do  so,  as  it  would  be  dangerous  to  let  the 
world  get  hold  of  them ;  and  so  it  proved.  But  Smith  declared 
that  any  objector  should  "  have  his  part  taken  out  of  the  Tree  of 
Life."  2 

Two  years  later,  while  the  church  was  still  in  Kirtland,  the 
"  revelations "  were  again  prepared  for  publication,  this  time 
under  the  title,  "  Doctrine  and  Covenants  of  the  Church  of  the 
Latter-Day  Saints,  carefully  selected  from  the  revelations  of  God, 
and  compiled  by  Joseph  Smith,  Jr. ;  Oliver  Cowdery,  Sidney  Rig- 

1  "Utah  and  the  Mormons,"  p.  182. 

2  It  has  been  stated  that  the  "  Book  of  Commandments  "  was  never  really  published, 
the  mob  destroying  the  sheets  before  it  got  out.  But  David  Whitmer  is  a  very  positive 
witness  to  the  contrary,  saying,  "  I  say  it  was  printed  complete  (and  copvrighted)  and 
many  copies  distributed  among  the  members  of  the  church  before  the  printing  press  was 
destroyed." 


BELIEFS    AND    DOCTRINES  — CHURCH    GOVERNMENT      113 

don,  F.  G.  Williams,  proprietors."  On  August  17,  1835,  a  general 
assembly  of  the  church  held  in  the  Kirtland  Temple  voted  to  accept 
this  book  as  the  doctrine  and  covenants  of  their  faith.  Ebenezer 
Robinson,  who  attended  the  meeting,  says  that  the  majority  of 
those  so  voting  "  had  neither  time  nor  opportunity  to  examine 
the  book  for  themselves  ;  they  had  no  means  of  knowing  whether 
any  alterations  had  been  made  in  any  of  the  revelations  or  not."  1 
In  fact,  many  important  alterations  were  so  made,  as  will  be 
pointed  out  in  the  course  of  this  story.  One  method  of  attempt- 
ing to  account  for  these  changes  has  been  by  making  the  plea 
that  parts  were  omitted  in  the  Missouri  editions.  On  this  point, 
however,  Whitmer  is  very  positive,  as  quoted. 

At  the  very  start  Smith's  revelations  failed  to  "  come  true." 
An  amusing  instance  of  this  occurred  before  the  Mormon  Bible 
was  published.  While  the  "copy"  was  in  the  hands  of  the 
printer,  Grandin,  Joe's  brother  Hyrum  and  others  who  had  be- 
come interested  in  the  enterprise  became  impatient  over  Harris's 
delay  in  raising  the  money  required  for  bringing  out  the  book. 
Hyrum  finally  proposed  that  some  of  them  attempt  to  sell  the 
copyright  in  Canada,  and  he  urged  Joe  to  ask  the  Lord  about 
doing  so.  Joe  complied,  and  announced  that  the  mission  to  Can- 
ada would  be  a  success.  Accordingly,  Oliver  Cowdery  and  Hiram 
Page  made  a  trip  to  Toronto  to  secure  a  publisher,  but  their  mis- 
sion failed  absolutely.  This  was  a  critical  test  of  the  faith  of 
Joe's  followers.  "We  were  all  in  great  trouble,"  says  David 
Whitmer,2  "  and  we  asked  Joseph  how  it  was  that  he  received  a 
revelation  from  the  Lord  for  some  brethren  to  go  to  Toronto  and 
sell  the  copyright,  and  the  brethren  had  utterly  failed  in  their 
undertaking.  Joseph  did  not  know  how  it  was,  so  he  inquired  of 
the  Lord  about  it,  and  behold,  the  following  '  revelation '  came 
through  the  stone  :  '  Some  revelations  are  from  God,  some  revela- 
tions are  of  man,  and  some  revelations  are  of  the  Devil.'  "  No  rule 
for  distinguishing  and  separating  these  revelations  was  given ; 
but  Whitmer,  whose  faith  in  Smith's  divine  mission  never  cooled, 
thus  disposes  of  the  matter,  "  So  we  see  that  the  revelation  to  go 
to  Toronto  and  sell  the  copyright  was  not  of  God."  Of  course,  a 
prophet  whose  followers  would  accept  such  an  excuse  was  certain 

1  In  his  reminiscences  in  The  Return. 

2  "  Address  to  All  Believers  in  Christ,"  p.  30. 


114  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

of  his  hold  upon  them.  This  incident  well  illustrates  the  kind  of 
material  which  formed  the  nucleus  of  the  church. 

Smith  never  let  the  previously  revealed  word  of  the  Lord  pro- 
tect any  of  his  flock  who  afterward  came  in  conflict  with  his  own 
plans.  For  example:  On  March  8,  183 1,  he  announced  a  " reve- 
lation "  (Sec.  47),  saying,  "  Behold,  it  is  expedient  in  me  that  my 
servant  John  [Whitmer]  should  write  and  keep  a  regular  history" 
of  the  church.  John  fell  into  disfavor  in  later  years,  and,  when  he 
refused  to  give  up  his  records,  Smith  and  Rigdon  addressed  a 
letter  to  him,1  in  connection  with  his  dismissal,  which  said  that 
his  notes  required  correction  by  them  before  publication,  "  know- 
ing your  incompetency  as  a  historian,  that  writings  coming  from 
your  pen  could  not  be  put  to  press  without  our  correcting  them, 
or  else  the  church  must  suffer  reproach.  Indeed,  sir,  we  never 
supposed  you  capable  of  writing  a  history."  Why  the  Lord  did 
not  consult  Smith  and  Rigdon  before  making  this  appointment  is 
one  of  the  unexplained  mysteries. 

These  "revelations,"  which  increased  in  number  from  16  in 
1829  to  19  in  1830,  numbered  35  in  183 1,  and  then  decreased  to  16 
in  1832,  13  in  1833,  5  in  1834,  2  in  1835,  3  in  1836,  1  in  1837,  8 
in  1838  (in  the  trying  times  in  Missouri),  1  in  1839,  none  m  l84°» 
3  in  1 84 1,  none  in  1842,  and  2,  including  the  one  on  polyg- 
amy, in  1843.  We  shall  see  that  in  his  latter  days,  in  Nauvoo, 
Smith  was  allowed  to  issue  revelations  only  after  they  had  been 
censored  by  a  council.  He  himself  testified  to  the  reckless  use 
which  he  made  of  them,  and  which  perhaps  brought  about  this 
action.     The  following  is  a  quotation  from  his  diary :  — 

"May  19,  1842.  —  While  the  election  [of  Smith  as  mayor  by  the  city  coun- 
cil] was  going  forward,  I  received  and  wrote  the  following  revelation :  <  Verily 
thus  saith  the  Lord  unto  you  my  servant  Joseph,  by  the  voice  of  the  Spirit,  Hiram 
Kimball  has  been  insinuating  evil  and  forming  evil  opinions  against  you  with 
others ;  and  if  he  continue  in  them,  he  and  they  shall  be  accursed,  for  I  am  the 
Lord  thy  God,  and  will  stand  by  thee  and  bless  thee.1  Which  I  threw  across  the 
room  to  Hiram  Kimball,  one  of  the  counsellors." 

Thus  it  seems  that  there  was  some  limit  to  the  extent  of  Joe's 
effrontery  which  could  be  submitted  to. 

We  shall  see  that  Brigham  Young  in  Utah  successfully  resisted 
constant  pressure  that  was  put  upon  him  by  his  flock  to  continue 

l  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XVI,  p.  133. 


BELIEFS   AND   DOCTRINES  — CHURCH  GOVERNMENT      115 

the  reception  of  "revelations."  While  he  was  prudent  enough  to 
avoid  the  pitfalls  that  would  have  surrounded  him  as  a  revealer, 
he  was  crafty  enough  not  to  belittle  his  own  authority  in  so  doing. 
In  his  discourse  on  the  occasion  of  the  open  announcement  of 
polygamy,  he  said,  "  If  an  apostle  magnifies  his  calling,  his  words 
are  the  words  of  eternal  life  and  salvation  to  those  who  hearken 
to  them,  just  as  much  so  as  any  written  revelations  contained  in 
these  books  "  (the  two  Bibles  and  the  "  Doctrine  and  Covenants  "). 

Hiram  Page  was  not  the  only  person  who  tried  to  imitate 
Smith's  "revelations."  A  boy  named  Isaac  Russell  gave  out 
such  messages  at  Kirtland  ;  Gladdin  Bishop  caused  much  trouble 
in  the  same  way  at  Nauvoo  ;  the  High  Council  withdrew  the  hand 
of  fellowship  from  Oliver  Olney  for  setting  himself  up  as  a  prophet; 
and  in  the  same  year  the  Times  and  Seasons  announced  a  pam- 
phlet by  J.  C.  Brewster,  purporting  to  be  one  of  the  lost  books  of 
Esdras,  "  written  by  the  power  of  God." 

In  the  Times  and  Seasons  (p.  309)  will  he  found  a  report  of  a 
conference  held  in  New  York  City  on  December  4,  1840,  at  which 
Elder  Sydney  Roberts  was  arraigned,  charged  with  "  having  a 
revelation  that  a  certain  brother  must  give  him  a  suit  of  clothes 
and  a  gold  watch,  the  best  that  could  be  had ;  also  saluting  the 
sisters  with  what  he  calls  a  holy  kiss."  He  was  told  that  he  could 
retain  his  membership  if  he  would  confess,  but  he  declared  that 
"he  knew  the  revelations  which  he  had  spoken  were  from  God." 
So  he  was  thereupon  "  cut  off." 

The  other  source  of  Mormon  belief — the  teachings  of  their 
leading  men  —  has  been  no  more  consistent  nor  infallible  than 
Smith's  "  revelations."  Mormon  preachers  have  been  generally 
uneducated  men,  most  of  them  ambitious  of  power,  and  ready  to 
use  the  pulpit  to  strengthen  their  own  positions.  Many  an  indi- 
vidual elder,  firm  in  his  faith,  has  travelled  and  toiled  as  faithfully 
as  any  Christian  missionary  ;  but  these  men,  while  they  have  added 
to  the  church  membership,  have  not  made  its  beliefs. 

Smith  probably  originated  very  little  of  the  church  polity,  ex- 
cept the  doctrine  of  polygamy,  and  what  is  published  over  his 
name  is  generally  the  production  of  some  of  his  counsellors.  Sec- 
tion 130  of  the  "Book  of  Doctrine  and  Covenants,"  headed  "Im- 
portant Items  of  Instruction,  given  by  Joseph  the  Prophet,  April 
2,  1843,"  contains  the  following:  — 


Il6  THE    STORY    OF   THE   MORMONS 

"  When  the  Saviour  shall  appear,  we  shall  see  him  as  he  is.  We  shall  see 
that  he  is  a  man  like  ourselves.  .  .  . 

"  The  Father  has  a  body  of  flesh  and  bones  as  tangible  as  man's ;  the  Son 
also ;  but  the  Holy  Ghost  has  not  a  body  of  flesh  and  bones,  but  is  a  personage 
of  spirit.     Were  it  not  so,  the  Holy  Ghost  could  not  dwell  in  us." 

An  article  in  the  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  VI,  for  which  the  prophet 
vouched,  contains  the  following  :  — 

"  The  weakest  child  of  God  which  now  exists  upon  the  earth  will  possess 
more  dominion,  more  property,  more  subjects,  and  more  power  in  glory  than  is 
possessed  by  Jesus  Christ  or  by  his  Father ;  while,  at  the  same  time,  Jesus  Christ 
and  his  Father  will  have  their  dominion,  kingdom  and  subjects  increased  in 
proportion." 

One  more  illustration  of  Smith's  doctrinal  views  will  suffice. 
In  a  funeral  sermon  preached  in  Nauvoo,  March  20,  1842,  he 
said  :  "As  concerning  the  resurrection,  I  will  merely  say  that  all 
men  will  come  from  the  grave  as  they  lie  down,  whether  old  or 
young;  there  will  not  be  'added  unto  their  stature  one  cubit,' 
neither  taken  from  it.  All  will  be  raised  by  the  power  of  God, 
having  spirit  in  their  bodies  but  not  blood."  1 

In  "  The  Latter-Day  Saints'  Catechism  or  Child's  Ladder," 
by  Elder  David  Moffat,  Genesis  v.  1,  and  Exodus  xxxiii.  22,  23, 
and  xxiv.  10  are  cited  to  prove  that  God  has  the  form  and  parts 
•of  a  man. 

The  greatest  vagaries  of  doctrinal  teachings  are  found  during 
Brigham  Young's  reign  in  Utah.  In  the  way  of  a  curiosity  the 
following  diagram  and  its  explanation,  by  Orson  Hyde,  may  be 
reproduced  from  the  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  IX,  p.  23  :  — 

"The  above  diagram  shows  the  order  and  unity  of  the  Kingdom  of  God. 
The  eternal  Father  sits  at  the  head,  crowned  King  of  Kings  and  Lord  of  Lords. 
Wherever  the  other  lines  meet  there  sits  a  king  and  priest  under  God,  bearing 
rule,  authority  and  dominion  under  the  Father.  He  is  one  with  the  Father, 
because  his  Kingdom  is  joined  to  his  Father's  and  becomes  part  of  it.  .  .  .  It 
will  be  seen  by  the  above  diagram  that  there  are  kingdoms  of  all  sizes,  an 
infinite  variety  to  suit  all  grades  of  merit  and  ability.  The  chosen  vessels  of 
God  are  the  kings  and  priests  that  are  placed  at  the  heads  of  their  kingdoms. 
They  have  received  their  washings  and  anointings  in  the  Temple  of  God  on 
earth." 

Young's  ambition  was  not  to  be  satisfied  until  his  name  was 
connected  with  some  doctrine  peculiarly  his  own.     Accordingly, 

1  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XIX,  p.  213. 


A  DIAGRAM  OF  THE  KINGDOM  OF  GOD. 


The  above  diagram  shows  the  order  and  unity  of  the  kingdom  of  God.  The 
eternal  Father  sits  at  the  head,  crowned  King  of  kings  and  Lord  of  lords.  Where- 
ever  the  other  lines  meet,  there  sits  a  king  and  a  priest  unto  Grod,  bearing  rule, 
authority,  and  dominion  under  the  Father.  He  is  one  with  the  Father,  because 
his  kingdom  is  joined  to  his  Father's  and  becomes  part  of  it. 

The  most  eminent  and  distinguished  prophets  who  have  laid  down  their  lives  for 
their  testimony  (Jesus  among  the  rest),  will  be  crowned  at  the  head  of  the  largest 
kingdoms  under  the  Father,  and  will  be  one  with  Christ  as  Christ  is  one  with  his 
Father ;  for  their  kingdoms  are  all  joined  together,  and  such  as  do  the  will  of  the 
Father,  the  same  are  his  mothers,  sisters,  and  brothers.      He  that  has  been  faithful 


BELIEFS   AND   DOCTRINES  — CHURCH   GOVERNMENT      117 

in  a  long  sermon  preached  in  the  Tabernacle  on  April  9,  1852,  he 
made  this  announcement  (the  italics  and  capitals  follow  the  official 
report) :  — 

"Now  hear  it,  O  inhabitants  of  the  earth,  Jew  and  Gentile,  saint  and  sinner. 
When  our  father  Adam  came  into  the  Garden  of  Eden,  he  came  into  it  with  a 
celestial  body,  and  brought  Eve,  one  of  his  wives,  with  him.  He  helped  to  make 
and  organize  this  world.  He  is  Michael,  the  Archangel,  the  Ancient  of  Days, 
about  whom  holy  men  have  written  and  spoken.1  He  is  our  Father  and  our 
God,  and  the  only  God  with  whom  we  have  to  do.  Every  man  upon  the  earth, 
professing  Christians  or  non-professing,  must  hear  it  and  will  know  it  sooner  or 
later.  ...  I  could  tell  you  much  more  about  this ;  but  were  I  to  tell  you  the 
whole  truth,  blasphemy  would  be  nothing  to  it,  in  the  estimation  of  the  super- 
stitious and  over  righteous  of  mankind.  .  .  .  Jesus,  our  Elder  Brother,  was 
begotten  in  the  flesh  by  the  same  character  that  was  in  the  Garden  of  Eden,  and 
who  is  our  Father  in  heaven."  a 

This  doctrine  was  made  a  leading  point  of  difference  between 
the  Utah  church  and  the  Reorganized  Church,  when  the  latter  was 
organized,  but  it  is  no  longer  defended  even  in  Utah.  The  Deseret 
Evening  News  of  March  21,  1900,  said  on  this  point,  "That 
which  President  Young  set  forth  in  the  discourse  referred  to  is  not 
preached  either  to  the  Latter-Day  Saints  or  to  the  world  as  a  part 
of  the  creed  of  the  church." 

Young  never  hesitated  to  rebuke  an  associate  whose  preaching 
did  not  suit  him.  In  a  discourse  in  Salt  Lake  City,  on  March  8, 
1857,  he  rebuked  Orson  Pratt,  one  of  the  ablest  of  the  church 
writers,  declaring  that  Pratt  did  not  "  know  enough  to  keep  his 
foot  out  of  it,  but  drowns  himself  in  his  philosophy."  He  ridiculed 
his  doctrine  that  "the  devils  in  hell  are  composed  of  and  filled 
with  the  Holy  Spirit,  or  Holy  Ghost,  and  possess  all  the  knowl- 
edge, wisdom,  and  power  of  the  gods,"  and  said,  "  When  I  read 
some  of  the  writings  of  such  philosophers  they  make  me  think, 
1  O  dear,  granny,  what  a  long  tail  our  puss  has  got.'  "  3 

The  Mormon  church  still  holds  that  an  existing  head  of  that  L? 
organization  can  always  interpret  the  divine  will  regarding  any 
question.     This  was  never  more  strikingly  illustrated  than  when 
Woodruff,  by  a  mere  dictum,  did  away  with  the  obligatory  char- 
acter of  polygamy. 

1  Young,  in  a  public  discourse  on  October  23,  1853,  declared  that  he  rejected  the 
story  of  Adam's  creation  as  "baby  stories  my  mother  taught  me  when  I  was  a  child." 
But  the  Mormon  Bible  (2  Nephi  ii.  18-22)  tells  the  story  of  Adam's  fall. 

2  Journal  of  Discourses,  Vol.  I,  pp.  50,  51.  8  Ibid.,  Vol.  IV,  p.  297. 


Il8  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

When  the  Mormons  were  under  a  cloud  in  Illinois,  in  1842, 
John  Wentworth,  editor  of  the  Chicago  Democrat,  applied  to  Smith 
for  a  statement  of  their  belief,  and  received  in  reply  a  list  of  13 
"  Articles  of  Faith  "  over  Smith's  signature.  This  statement  was 
intended  to  win  for  them  sympathy  as  martyrs  to  a  simple  religious 
belief,  and  it  has  been  cited  in  Congress  as  proof  of  their  soul 
purity.  But  as  illustrating  the  polity  of  the  church  it  is  quite 
valueless. 

The  doctrine  of  polygamy  and  the  ceremonies  of  the  Endow- 
ment House  will  be  considered  in  their  proper  place.  One  dis- 
tinctive doctrine  of  the  church  must  be  explained  before  this 
subject  is  dismissed,  namely,  that  which  calls  for  "  baptism  for 
the  dead."  This  doctrine  is  founded  on  an  interpretation  of 
1  Corinthians  xv.  29 :  "  Else  what  shall  they  do  which  are 
baptized  for  the  dead,  if  the  dead  rise  not  at  all  ?  Why  are  they 
then  baptized  for  the  dead  ?" 

An  explanation  of  this  doctrine  in  the  Times  and  Seasons  of 
May  1,  1841,  says  :  — 

"  This  text  teaches  us  the  important  and  cheering  truth  that  the  departed 
spirit  is  in  a  probationary  state,  and  capable  of  being  affected  by  the  proclama- 
tion of  the  Gospel.  .  .  .  Christ  offers  pardon,  peace,  holiness,  and  eternal  life  to 
the  quick  and  the  dead,  —  the  living,  on  condition  of  faith  and  baptism  for  re- 
mission of  sins ;  the  departed,  on  the  same  condition  of  faith  in  person  and 
baptism  by  a  living  kinsman  in  his  behalf.  It  may  be  asked,  will  this  baptism 
by  proxy  necessarily  save  the  dead  ?  We  answer,  no ;  neither  will  the  same 
necessarily  save  the  living." 

This  doctrine  was  first  taught  to  the  church  in  Ohio.  In  later 
years,  in  Nauvoo,  Smith  seemed  willing  to  accept  its  paternity, 
and  in  an  article  in  the  Times  and  Seasons  of  April  15,  1842,  signed 
"  Ed.,"  when  he  was  its  editor,  he  said  that  he  was  the  first  to 
point  it  out.  The  article  shows,  however,  that  it  was  doubtless 
written  by  Rigdon,  as  it  indicates  a  knowledge  of  the  practice  of 
such  baptism  by  the  Marcionites  in  the  second  century,  and  of 
Chrysostom's  explanation  of  it.  A  note  on  1  Corinthians  xv.  29, 
in  "  The  New  Testament  Commentary  for  English  Readers," 
edited  by  Lord  Bishop  Ellicott  of  Gloucester  and  Bristol  (London, 
1878),  gives  the  following  historical  sketch  of  the  practice:  — 

"  There  have  been  numerous  and  ingenious  conjectures  as  to  the  meaning  of 
this  passage.      The  only  tenable  interpretation  is  that  there  existed  amongst 


BELIEFS   AND   DOCTRINES  — CHURCH   GOVERNMENT      119 

some  of  the  Christians  at  Corinth  a  practice  of  baptizing  a  living  person  in  the 
stead  of  some  convert  who  had  died  before  that  sacrament  had  been  administered 
to  him.  Such  a  practice  existed  amongst  the  Marcionites  in  the  second  century, 
and  still  earlier  amongst  a  sect  called  the  Cerinthians.  The  idea  evidently  was 
that,  whatever  benefit  flowed  from  baptism,  might  be  thus  vicariously  secured 
for  the  deceased  Christian.  St.  Chrysostom  gives  the  following  description  of 
it  :  '  After  a  catechumen  (one  prepared  for  baptism  but  not  actually  baptized) 
was  dead,  they  hid  a  living  man  under  the  bed  of  the  deceased ;  then,  coming 
to  the  bed  of  the  dead  man,  they  spoke  to  him,  and  asked  whether  he  would 
receive  baptism ;  and,  he  making  no  answer,  the  other  replied  in  his  stead,  and 
so  they  baptized  the  living  for  the  dead.'  Does  St.  Paul  then,  by  what  he  here 
says,  sanction  the  superstitious  practice  ?  Certainly  not.  He  carefully  sepa- 
rated himself  and  the  Corinthians,  to  whom  he  immediately  addresses  himself, 
from  those  who  adopted  this  custom.  .  .  .  Those  who  do  that,  and  disbelieve  a 
resurrection,  refute  themselves.  This  custom  possibly  sprang  up  among  the 
Jewish  converts,  who  had  been  accustomed  to  something  similar  in  their  faith. 
If  a  Jew  died  without  having  been  purified  from  some  ceremonial  uncleanness, 
some  living  person  had  the  necessary  ablution  performed  on  him,  and  the  dead 
were  so  accounted  clean." 

Other  commentators  have  found  means  to  explain  this  text 
without  giving  it  reference  to  a  baptism  for  dead  persons,  as,  for 
instance,  that  it  means,  "  with  an  interest  in  the  resurrection  of  the 
dead."1  Another  explanation  is  that  by  "the  dead"  is  meant  the 
dead  Christ,  as  referred  to  in  Romans  vi.  3,  "  Know  ye  not  that 
so  many  of  us  as  were  baptized  into  Jesus  Christ  were  baptized 
into  his  death  ?  " 

This  doctrine  was  a  very  taking  one  with  the  uneducated  Mor- 
mon converts  who  crowded  into  Nauvoo,  and  the  church  officers 
saw  in  it  a  means  to  hasten  the  work  on  the  Temple.  At  first 
families  would  meet  on  the  bank  of  the  Mississippi  River,  and 
some  one,  of  the  order  of  the  Melchisedec  Priesthood,  would  bap- 
tize them  wholesale  for  all  their  dead  relatives  whose  names  they 
could  remember,  each  sex  for  relatives  of  the  same.  But  as  soon 
as  the  font  in  the  Temple  was  ready  for  use,  these  baptisms  were 
restricted  to  that  edifice,  and  it  was  required  that  all  the  baptized 
should  have  paid  their  tithings.  At  a  conference  at  Nauvoo  in 
October,  1841,  Smith  said  that  those  who  neglected  the  baptism  of 
their  dead  "  did  it  at  the  peril  of  their  own  salvation."2 

The  form  of  church  government,  as  worked  out  in  the  early  days, 
is  set  forth  in  the  "  Book  of  Doctrine  and  Covenants."     The  first 

1  "  Commentary  by  Bishops  and  Other  Clergy  of  the  Anglican  Church." 

2  Times  and  Seasons,  Vol.  II,  p.  578. 


120  THE    STORY    OF   THE   MORMONS 

officers  provided  for  were  the  twelve  apostles,1  and  the  next  the 
elders,  priests,  teachers,  and  deacons,  Edward  Partridge  being 
announced  as  the  first  bishop  in  1831.  The  church  was  loosely 
governed  for  the  first  years  after  its  establishment  at  Kirtland.  A 
guiding  power  was  provided  for  in  a  revelation  of  March  8,  1833 
(Sec.  90),  when  Smith  was  told  by  the  Lord  that  Rigdon  and 
F.  G.  Williams  were  accounted  as  equal  with  him  "  in  holding  the 
keys  of  this  last  kingdom."  These  three  first  held  the  famous  office 
of  the  First  Presidency,  representing  the  Trinity. 

On  February  17,  1834  (Sec.  102),  a  General  High  Council  of 
twenty-four  High  Priests  assembled  at  Smith's  house  in  Kirtland 
and  organized  the  High  Council  of  the  church,  consisting  of  Twelve 
High  Priests,  with  one  or  three  Presidents,  as  the  case  might  re- 
quire. The  office  of  High  Priest,  and  the  organization  of  a  High 
Council  were  apparently  an  afterthought,  and  were  added  to  the 
"  revelation  "  after  its  publication  in  the  "  Book  of  Commandments." 
Other  forms  of  organization  that  were  from  time  to  time  decided 
on  were  announced  in  a  revelation  dated  March  28,  1835  (Sec.  107), 
which  defined  the  two  priesthoods,  Melchisedec  and  Aaronic,  and 
their  powers.  There  were  to  be  three  Presiding  High  Priests  to 
form  a  Quorum  of  the  Presidency  of  the  church ;  a  Seventy,  called 
to  preach  the  Gospel,  who  would  form  a  Quorum  equal  in  authority 
to  the  Quorum  of  the  Twelve,  and  be  presided  over  by  seven  of  their 
number.  Smith  soon  organized  two  of  these  Quorums  of  Seventies. 
At  the  time  of  the  dedications  of  the  Temple  at  Nauvoo,  in  1844, 
there  were  fifteen  of  them,  and  to-day  they  number  more  than  120. 

/Each  separate  church  organization,  as  formed,  was  called  a 
Stake,  and  each  Stake  had  over  it  a  Presidency,  High  Priests,  and 
Council  of  Twelve.  We  find  the  meaning  of  the  word  "  Stake  "  in 
some  of  Smith's  earlier  "  revelations."  Thus,  in  the  one  dated 
June  4,  1833,  regarding  the  organization  of  the  church  at  Kirtland, 
it  was  said,  "  It  is  expedient  in  me  that  this  Stake  that  I  have  set 
for  the  strength  of  Zion  be  made  strong."  Again,  in  one  dated 
December  16,  1839,  on  the  gathering  of  the  Saints,  it  is  stated,  "  I 
have  other  places  which  I  will  appoint  unto  them,  and  they  shall 
be  called  Stakes  for  the  curtains,  or  the  strength  of  Zion."  In  Utah, 
to-day,  the  Stakes  form  groups  of  settlements,  and  are  generally 
organized  on  county  lines. 

1  (Sec.  18,  June,  1829.) 


BELIEFS   AND    DOCTRINES  — CHURCH    GOVERNMENT      121 

The  prophet  made  a  substantial  provision  for  his  father,  found- 
ing for  him  the  office  of  Patriarch,  in  accordance  with  an  unpub- 
lished "revelation."  The  principal  business  of  the  Patriarch  was 
to  dispense  "blessings,"  which  were  regarded  by  the  faithful  as  a 
sort  of  charm,  to  ward  off  misfortune.  Joseph,  Sr.,  awarded  these 
blessings  without  charge  when  he  began  dispensing  them  at  Kirt- 
land,  but  a  High  Council  held  there  in  1835  allowed  him  $10  a 
week  while  blessing  the  church.  After  his  formal  anointing  in 
1836  he  was  known  as  Father  Smith,  and  the  next  year  his  salary 
was  made  $1.50  a  day.1  Hyrum  became  Patriarch  when  his 
father  died  in  1840,  his  brother  William  succeeded  him,  his  Uncle 
John  came  next,  and  his  Uncle  Joseph  after  John.  Patriarchal 
blessings  were  advertised  in  the  Mormon  newspaper  in  Nauvoo  like 
other  merchandise.  They  could  be  obtained  in  writing,  and  con- 
tained promises  of  almost  anything  that  a  man  could  wish,  such  as 
freedom  from  poverty  and  disease,  life  prolonged  until  the  coming 
of  Christ,  etc.2  In  1875  the  price  of  a  blessing  in  Utah  had  risen 
to  $2.  The  office  of  Patriarch  is  still  continued,  with  one  chief 
Patriarch,  known  as  Patriarch  of  the  Church,  and  subordinate  Patri- 
archs in  the  different  Stakes.  The  position  of  Patriarch  of  the 
church  has  always  been  regarded  as  a  hereditary  one,  and  bestowed 
on  some  member  of  the  Smith  family,  as  it  is  to-day. 

1  The  departure  of  the  Patriarch  from  Ohio  was  somewhat  dramatic.  As  his  wife 
tells  the  story  in  her  book,  the  old  man  was  taken  by  a  constable  before  a  justice  of  the 
peace  on  a  charge  of  performing  the  marriage  service  without  any  authority,  and  was 
fined  £3000,  and  sentenced  to  the  penitentiary  in  default  of  payment.  Through  the 
connivance  of  the  constable,  who  had  been  a  Mormon,  the  prisoner  was  allowed  to  leap 
out  of  a  window,  and  he  remained  in  hiding  at  New  Portage  until  his  family  were  ready 
to  start  for  Missouri.  The  revelation  of  January  19,  1841,  announced  that  he  was  then 
sitting  "with  Abraham  at  his  right  hand." 

2  Ferris's  "  Utah  and  the  Mormons,"  p.  314,  and  "  Wife  No.  19,"  p.  581. 


BOOK    II 

IN  OHIO 

CHAPTER   I 
THE   FIRST   CONVERTS   AT   KIRTLAND 

The  four  missionaries  who  had  been  sent  to  Ohio  under  Cow- 
dery's  leadership  arrived  there  in  October,  1830.  Rigdon  left  Kirt- 
land  on  his  visit  to  Smith  in  New  York  State  in  the  December 
following,  and  in  January,  183 1,  he  returned  to  Ohio,  taking  Smith 
with  him. 

The  party  who  set  out  for  Ohio,  ostensibly  to  preach  to  the 
Lamanites,  consisted  of  Oliver  Cowdery,  Parley  P.  Pratt,  Peter 
Whitmer,  Jr.,  and  Ziba  Peterson,  the  latter  one  of  Smith's  original 
converts,  who,  it  may  be  noted,  was  deprived  of  his  land  and  made 
to  work  for  others  a  year  later  in  Missouri,  because  of  offences 
against  the  church  authorities.  These  men  preached  as  they  jour- 
neyed, making  a  brief  stop  at  Buffalo  to  instruct  the  Indians  there. 
On  reaching  Ohio,  Pratt's  acquaintance  with  Rigdon's  Disciples 
gave  him  an  opportunity  to  bring  the  new  Bible  to  the  attention  of 
many  people.  The  character  of  the  Smiths  was  quite  unknown  to 
the  pioneer  settlers,  and  the  story  of  the  miraculously  delivered 
Bible  filled  many  of  them  with  wonder  rather  than  with  unbelief. 

The  missionaries  began  the  work  of  organizing  a  church  at 
once.  Some  members  of  Rigdon's  congregation  had  already  formed 
a  "  common  stock  society,"  and  were  believers  in  a  speedy  millen- 
nium, and  to  these  the  word  brought  by  the  new-comers  was  espe- 
cially welcome.  Cowdery  baptized  seventeen  persons  into  the  new 
church.  Rigdon  at  the  start  denied  his  right  to  do  this,  and,  in  a 
debate  between  him  and  the  missionaries  which  followed  at  Rig- 
don's house,  Rigdon  quoted  Scripture  to  prove  that,  even  if  they 
had  seen  an  angel,  as  they  declared,  it  might  have  been  Satan 


THE    FIRST    CONVERTS   AT    KIRTLAND  123 

transformed.  Cowdery  asked  if  he  thought  that,  in  response  to  a 
prayer  that  God  would  show  him  an  angel,  the  Heavenly  Father 
would  suffer  Satan  to  deceive  him.  Rigdon  replied  that  if  Cow- 
dery made  such  a  request  of  the  Heavenly  Father  "  when  He  has 
never  promised  you  such  a  thing,  if  the  devil  never  had  an  oppor- 
tunity of  deceiving  you  before,  you  give  him  one  now."  1  But 
after  a  brief  study  of  the  new  book,  Rigdon  announced  that  he,  too, 
had  had  a  "revelation,"  declaring  to  him  that  Mormonism  was 
to  be  believed.  He  saw  in  a  vision  all  the  orders  of  professing 
Christians  pass  before  him,  and  all  were  "  as  corrupt  as  corruption 
itself,"  while  the  heart  of  the  man  who  brought  him  the  book  was 
"  as  pure  as  an  angel." 

The  announcement  of  Rigdon's  conversation  gave  Mormonism 
an  advertisement  and  a  support  that  had  a  wide  effect,  and  it  alarmed 
the  orthodox  of  that  part  of  the  country  as  they  had  never  been 
alarmed  before.  Referring  to  it,  Hayden  says,  "  The  force  of  this 
shock  was  like  an  earthquake  when  Symonds  Ryder,  Ezra  Booth,  and 
many  others  submitted  to  the  '  New  Dispensation.' "  Largely 
through  his  influence,  the  Mormon  church  at  Kirtland  soon  num- 
bered more  than  one  hundred  members. 

During  all  that  autumn  and  early  winter  crowds  went  to  Kirt- 
land to  learn  about  the  new  religion.  On  Sundays  the  roads  would 
be  thronged  with  people,  some  in  whatever  vehicles  they  owned, 
some  on  horseback,  and  some  on  foot,  all  pressing  forward  to  hear 
the  expounders  of  the  new  Gospel  and  to  learn  the  particulars  of 
the  new  Bible.  Pioneers  in  a  country  where  there  was  little  to  give 
variety  to  their  lives,  they  were  easily  influenced  by  any  religious 
excitement,  and  the  announcement  of  a  new  Bible  and  prophet  was 
certain  to  arouse  their  liveliest  interest.  They  had,  indeed,  inher- 
ited a  tendency  to  religious  enthusiasm,  so  recently  had  their  parents 
gone  through  the  excitements  of  the  early  days  of  Methodism,  or 
of  the  great  revivals  of  the  new  West  at  the  beginning  of  the  cen- 
tury, when  (to  quote  one  of  the  descriptions  given  by  Henry  Howe) 
more  than  twenty  thousand  persons  assembled  in  one  vast  encamp- 
ment, "hundreds  of  immortal  beings  moving  to  and  fro,  some 
preaching,  some  praying  for  mercy,  others  praising  God.     Such 

1  "  It  seemed  to  be  a  part  of  Rigdon's  plan  to  make  such  a  fight  that,  when  he  did 
surrender,  the  triumph  of  the  cause  that  had  defeated  him  would  be  all  the  more  com- 
plete."—  Kennedy,  "  Early  Days  of  Mormonism." 


124  THE    STORY    OF    THE    MORMONS 

was  the  eagerness  of  the  people  to  attend,  that  entire  neighborhoods 
were  forsaken,  and  the  roads  literally  crowded  by  those  pressing 
forward  on  their  way  to  the  groves."  1  Any  new  religious  leader 
could  then  make  his  influence  felt  on  the  Western  border.  Dylkes, 
the  "  Leatherwood  God,"  had  found  it  necessary  only  to  announce 
himself  as  the  real  Messiah  at  an  Ohio  camp-meeting,  in  1828,  to 
build  up  a  sect  on  that  assumption.  Freewill  Baptists,  Winebren- 
nerians,  Disciples,  Shakers,  and  Universalists  were  urging  their 
doctrines  and  confusing  the  minds  of  even  the  thoughtful  with  their 
conflicting  views.  We  have  seen  to  what  beliefs  the  preaching  of 
the  Disciples'  evangelists  had  led  the  people  of  the  Western  Reserve, 
and  it  did  not  really  require  a  much  broader  exercise  of  faith  (or 
credulity)  to  accept  the  appearance  of  a  new  prophet  with  a  new 
Bible. 

While  the  main  body  of  converts  was  made  up  of  persons  easily 
susceptible  to  religious  excitement,  and  accustomed  to  have  their 
opinions  on  such  subjects  formed  for  them,  men  of  education  and 
more  or  less  training  in  theology  were  found  among  the  early  adhe- 
rents to  the  new  belief.  It  is  interesting  to  see  how  the  minds  of 
such  men  were  influenced,  and  this  we  are  enabled  to  do  from  per- 
sonal experiences  related  by  some  of  them. 

One  of  these,  John  Corrill,  a  man  of  intelligence,  who  stayed 
with  the  church  until  it  was  driven  out  of  Missouri,  then  became  a 
member  of  the  Missouri  Legislature,  and  wrote  a  brief  history  of 
the  church  to  the  year  1839,  m  this  pamphlet  answered  very  clearly 
the  question  often  asked  by  his  friends,  "  How  did  you  come  to 
join  the  Mormons  ?  "  A  copy  of  the  new  Bible  was  given  to  him  by 
Cowdery  when  the  missionaries,  on  their  Western  trip,  passed  through 
Ashtabula  County,  Ohio,  where  he  lived.  A  brief  reading  con- 
vinced him  that  it  was  a  mere  money-making  scheme,  and  when 
he  learned  that  they  had  stopped  at  Kirtland,  he  did  not  entertain 
a  doubt,  that,  under  Rigdon's  criticism,  the  pretensions  of  the  mis- 
sionaries would  be  at  once  laid  bare.  When,  on  the  contrary,  word 
came  that  Rigdon  and  the  majority  of  his  society  had  accepted  the 
new  faith,  Corrill  asked  himself  :  "  What  does  this  mean  ?  Are  Elder 
Rigdon  and  these  men  such  fools  as  to  be  duped  by  these  impos- 
tors ? "  After  talking  the  matter  over  with  a  neighbor,  he  decided 
to  visit  Kirtland,  hoping  to  bring  Rigdon  home  with  him,  with  the 

1  "  Historical  Collections  of  the  Great  West." 


THE   FIRST   CONVERTS   AT    KIRTLAND  125 

idea  that  he  might  be  saved  from  the  imposition  if  he  could  be  taken 
from  the  influence  of  the  impostors.  But  before  he  reached  Kirt- 
land,  Corrill  heard  of  Rigdon's  baptism  into  the  new  church.  Find- 
ing Kirtland  in  a  state  of  great  religious  excitement,  he  sought 
discussions  with  the  leaders  of  the  new  movement,  but  not  always 
successfully. 

Corrill  started  home  with  a  "  heart  full  of  serious  reflections." 
Were  not  the  people  of  Berea  nobler  than  the  people  of  Thessalo- 
nica  because  "  they  searched  the  Scriptures  daily,  whether  these 
things  were  so  ?  "  Might  he  not  be  fighting  against  God  in  his  dis- 
belief ?  He  spent  two  or  three  weeks  reading  the  Mormon  Bible; 
investigated  the  bad  reports  of  the  new  sect  that  reached  him  and 
found  them  without  foundation  ;  went  back  to  Kirtland,  and  there 
convinced  himself  that  the  laying  on  of  hands  and  "  speaking  with 
tongues  "  were  inspired  by  some  supernatural  agency  ;  admitted  to 
himself  that,  accepting  the  words  of  Peter  (Acts  ii.  17-20),  it  was 
"just  as  consistent  to  look  for  prophets  in  this  age  as  in  any  other." 
Smith  seemed  to  have  been  a  bad  man,  but  was  not  Moses  a  fugi- 
tive from  justice,  as  the  murderer  of  a  man  whose  body  he  had  hid- 
den in  the  sand,  when  God  called  him  as  a  prophet  ?  The  story  of 
the  long  hiding  and  final  delivery  of  the  golden  plates  to  Smith 
taxed  his  credulity ;  but  on  rereading  the  Scriptures  he  found  that 
books  are  referred  to  therein  which  they  do  not  contain  —  Book  of 
Nathan  the  Prophet,  Book  of  Gad  the  Seer,  Book  of  Shemaiah  the 
Prophet,  and  Book  of  Iddo  the  Seer  (1  Chron.  xxix.  29;  2  Chron. 
ix.  29  and  xii.  15).  This  convinced  him  that  the  Scriptures  were 
not  complete.  Daniel  and  John  were  commanded  to  seal  the  Book. 
David  declared  (Psalms  xxxv.  n)  that  "truth  shall  spring  out  of 
the  earth,"  and  from  the  earth  Smith  took  the  plates ;  and  Ezekiel 
(xxxvii.  15-21)  foretold  the  existence  of  two  records,  by  means  of 
which  there  shall  be  a  gathering  together  of  the  children  of  Israel. 
It  finally  seemed  to  Corrill  that  the  Mormon  Bible  corresponded 
with  the  record  of  Joseph  referred  to  by  Ezekiel,  the  Holy  Bible 
being  the  record  of  Judah. 

Not  fully  satisfied,  he  finally  decided,  however,  to  join  the  new 
church,  with  a  mental  reservation  that  he  would  leave  it  if  he  ever 
found  it  to  be  a  deception.  Explaining  his  reasons  for  leaving 
it  when  he  did,  he  says,  "  I  can  see  nothing  that  convinces  me 
that  God  has  been  our  leader;  calculation  after  calculation  has 


126  THE    STORY   OF   THE    MORMONS 

failed,  and  plan  after  plan  has  been  overthrown,  and  our  prophet 
seemed  not  to  know  the  event  till  too  late." 

The  two  other  most  prominent  converts  to  the  new  church  in 
Ohio  were  the  Rev.  Ezra  Booth,  a  Methodist  preacher  of  more 
than  ordinary  culture,  of  Mantua,  and  Symonds  Ryder,  a  native 
of  Vermont,  whom  Alexander  Campbell  had  converted  to  the 
Disciples'  belief  in  1828,  and  who  occupied  the  pulpit  at  Hiram 
when  called  on.  Booth  visited  Smith  in  183 1,  with  some  members 
of  his  own  congregation,  and  was  so  impressed  by  the  miraculous 
curing  of  the  lame  arm  of  a  woman  of  his  party  by  Smith,  that  he 
soon  gave  in  his  allegiance.  Ryder  had  always  found  one  thing 
lacking  in  the  Disciples'  theology  —  he  looked  for  some  actual 
"  gift  of  the  Holy  Spirit  "  in  the  way  of  "  signs  "  that  were  to  fol- 
low them  that  believed.  He  was  eventually  induced  to  announce 
his  conversion  to  the  new  church  after  "  he  read  in  a  newspaper, 
an  account  of  the  destruction  of  Pekin  in  China,  and  remembered 
that,  six  weeks  before,  a  young  Mormon  girl  had  predicted  the 
destruction  of  that  city."  This  statement  was  made  in  the  sermon 
preached  at  his  funeral.  Both  of  these  men  confessed  their  mis- 
take four  months  later,  after  Booth  had  returned  from  a  trip  to 
Missouri  with  Smith. 

Among  the  ignorant,  even  the  most  extravagant  of  the  claims 
of  the  Mormon  leaders  had  influence.  One  man,  when  he  heard 
an  elder  in  the  midst  of  a  sermon  "speak  with  tongues,"  in  a 
language  he  had  never  heard  before,  "felt  a  sudden  thrill  from 
the  back  of  his  head  down  his  backbone,"  and  was  converted  on 
the  spot.  John  D.  Lee,  of  Catholic  education,  was  convinced  by 
an  elder  that  the  end  of  the  world  was  near,  and  sold  his  property 
in  Illinois  for  what  it  would  bring,  and  moved  to  Far  West,  in 
order  to  be  in  the  right  place  when  the  last  day  dawned.  Lorenzo 
Snow,  the  recent  President  of  the  church,  says  that  he  was  "  thor- 
oughly convinced  that  obedience  to  those  [the  Mormon]  prophets 
would  impart  miraculous  powers,  manifestations,  and  revelations," 
the  first  manifestation  of  which  occurred  some  weeks  later,  when 
he  heard  a  sound  over  his  head  "  like  the  rustling  of  silken  robes, 
and  the  spirit  of  God  descended  upon  me."  1 

The  arguments  that  control  men's  religious  opinions  are  too 
varied  even  for  classification.     In  a  case  like  Mormonism  they 

1  Biography  of  Snow,  by  his  sister  Eliza. 


THE   FIRST   CONVERTS   AT   KIRTLAND  127 

range  from  the  really  conscientious  study  of  a  Corrill  to  the  whim 
of  the  Paumotuan,  of  whom  Stevenson  heard  in  the  South  Seas, 
who  turned  Mormon  when  his  wife  died,  after  being  a  pillar  of 
the  Catholic  church  for  fifteen  years,  on  the  ground  that  "  that 
must  be  a  poor  religion  that  could  not  save  a  man  his  wife."  Any 
person  who  will  examine  those  early  defences  of  the  Mormon 
faith,  Parley  P.  Pratt's  "A  Voice  of  Warning,"  and  Orson  Pratt's 
"  Divine  Authenticity  of  the  Book  of  Mormon,"  will  find  what  use 
can  be  made  of  an  insistence  on  the  literal  acceptance  of  the  Scrip- 
tures in  defending  such  a  sect  as  theirs,  especially  with  persons 
whose  knowledge  of  the  Scriptures  is  much  less  than  their  rever- 
ence for  them. 

Professor  J.  B.  Turner,1  writing  in  1842,  when  the  early  teach- 
ings of  Mormonism  had  just  had  their  effect  in  what  is  now  styled 
the  middle  West,  observed  that  these  teachings  had  made  more 
infidels  than  Mormon  converts.  This  is  accounted  for  by  the  fact 
that  persons  who  attempted  to  follow  the  Mormon  argument  by 
studying  the  Scriptures,  found  their  previous  interpretation  of 
parts  of  the  Holy  Bible  overturned,  and  the  whole  book  placed 
under  a  cloud.  W.  J.  Stillman  mentions  a  similar  effect  in  the 
case  of  Ruskin.  When  they  were  in  Switzerland,  Ruskin  would 
do  no  painting  on  Sunday,  while  Stillman  regarded  the  sanctity 
of  the  first  day  of  the  week  as  a  "theological  fiction."  In  a  dis- 
cussion of  the  subject  between  them,  Stillman  established  to  Rus- 
kin's  satisfaction  that  there  was  no  Scriptural  authority  for 
transferring  the  day  of  rest  from  the  seventh  to  the  first  day  of 
the  week.  "  The  creed  had  so  bound  him  to  the  letter,"  says 
Stillman,  "that  the  least  enlargement  of  the  stricture  broke  it, 
and  he  rejected,  not  only  the  tradition  of  the  Sunday  Sabbath, 
but  the  whole  of  the  ecclesiastical  interpretation  of  the  texts.  He 
said,  '  If  they  have  deceived  me  in  this,  they  have  probably  de- 
ceived me  in  all.' "  The  Mormons  soon  learned  that  it  was  more 
profitable  for  them  to  seek  converts  among  those  who  would  ac- 
cept without  reasoning. 

1  "  Mormonism  in  all  Ages." 


CHAPTER   II 
WILD   VAGARIES   OF  THE   CONVERTS 

The  scenes  at  Kirtland  during  the  first  winter  of  the  church 
there  reached  the  limit  of  religious  enthusiasm.  The  younger 
members  outdid  the  elder  in  manifesting  their  belief.  They  saw 
wonderful  lights  in  the  air,  and  constantly  received  visions. 
Mounting  stumps  in  the  field,  they  preached  to  imaginary  con- 
gregations, and,  picking  up  stones,  they  would  read  on  them 
words  which  they  said  disappeared  as  soon  as  known.  At  the 
evening  prayer-meetings  the  laying  on  of  hands  would  be  fol- 
lowed by  a  sort  of  fit,  in  which  the  enthusiasts  would  fall  appar- 
ently lifeless  on  the  floor,  or  contort  their  faces,  creep  on  their 
hands  or  knees,  imitate  the  Indian  process  of  killing  and  scalping, 
and  chase  balls  of  fire  through  the  fields.1 

Some  of  the  young  men  announced  that  they  had  received 
"  commissions  "  to  teach  and  preach,  written  on  parchment,  which 
came  to  them  from  the  sky,  and  which  they  reached  by  jumping 
into  the  air.  Howe  reproduces  one  of  these,  the  conclusion  of 
which,  with  the  seal,  follows  :  — 

"  That  that  you  had  a  messenger  tell  you  to  go  and  get  the  other  night, 
you  must  not  show  to  any  son  of  Adam.  Obey  this,  and  I  will  stand  by  you 
in  all  cases.  My  servants,  obey  my  commandments  in  all  cases,  and  I  will 
provide. 

"  Be  ye  always  ready,  ") 
Be  ye  always  ready,  }»  Whenever  I  shall  call. 
Be  ye  always  ready,  j  My  seal. 


1  CorrilFs  "  Brief  History  of  the  Church,"  p.  16;    Howe's  "Mormonism  Unveiled," 
p.  104. 

128 


WILD    VAGARIES   OF   THE   CONVERTS  1 29 

"There  shall  be  something  of  great  importance  revealed  when  I  shall  call  you 
to  go :  My  servants,  be  faithful  over  a  few  things,  and  I  will  make  you  a  ruler 
over  many.     Amen,  Amen,  Amen.1' 

Foolishly  extravagant  as  these  manifestations  appear  (Corrill 
says  that  comparatively  few  members  indulged  in  them),  there 
was  nothing  in  them  peculiar  to  the  Mormon  belief.  The  meet- 
ings of  the  Disciples,  in  the  year  of  Smith's  arrival  in  Ohio  and 
later,  when  men  like  Campbell  and  Scott  spoke,  were  swayed 
with  the  most  intense  religious  enthusiasm.  A  description  of  the 
effect  of  Campbell's  preaching  at  a  grove  meeting  in  the  Cuya- 
hoga Valley  in  1831  says:  — 

"  The  woods  were  full  of  horses  and  carriages,  and  the  hundreds  already 
there  were  rapidly  swelled  to  many  thousands  ;  all  were  of  one  race  —  the 
Yankee  ;  all  of  one  calling,  or  nearly  —  the  farmer.  .  .  .  When  Campbell 
closed,  low  murmurs  broke  and  ran  through  the  awed  crowd  ;  men  and  women 
from  all  parts  of  the  vast  assembly  with  streaming  eyes  came  forward  ;  young 
men  who  had  climbed  into  small  trees  from  curiosity,  came  down  from  conviction, 
and  went  forward  for  baptism."  x 

It  is  easy  to  cite  very  "orthodox"  precedents  for  such  mani- 
festations. One  of  these  we  find  in  the  accounts  of  what  were 
called  "the  jerks,"  which  accompanied  a  great  revival  in  1803, 
brought  about  by  the  preaching  of  the  Rev.  Joseph  Badger,  a 
Yale  graduate  and  a  Congregationalist,  who  was  the  first  mission- 
ary to  the  Western  Reserve.  J.  S.  C.  Abbott,  in  his  history  of 
Ohio,  describing  the  "jerks,"  says:  — 

"  The  subject  was  instantaneously  seized  with  spasms  in  every  muscle,  nerve 
and  tendon.  His  head  was  thrown  backward  and  forward,  and  from  side  to 
side,  with  inconceivable  rapidity.  So  swift  was  the  motion  that  the  features 
could  no  more  be  discerned  than  the  spokes  of  a  wheel  can  be  seen  when 
revolving  with  the  greatest  velocity.  .  .  .  All  were  impressed  with  a  conviction 
that  there  was  something  supernatural  in  these  convulsions,  and  that  it  was 
opposing  the  spirit  of  God  to  resist  them.1' 

The  most  extravagant  enthusiasm  of  the  Kirtland  converts, 
and  the  most  extravagant  claims  of  the  Mormon  leaders  at  that 
time,  were  exceeded  by  the  manifestations  of  converts  in  the 
early  days  of  Methodism,  and  the  miraculous  occurrences  testified 
to  by  Wesley  himself,2  —  a  cloud  tempering  the  sun  in  answer  to 

1  Riddle's  "The  Portrait." 

2  For  examples  see  Lecky's  "England  in  the  Nineteenth  Century,"  Vol.  Ill,  Chap. 
VIII,  and  Wesley's  "  Journal." 

K 


130  THE   STORY    OF   THE   MORMONS 

his  prayer ;  his  horse  cured  of  lameness  by  faith ;  the  case  of  a 
blind  Catholic  girl  who  saw  plainly  when  her  eyes  rested  on  the 
New  Testament,  but  became  blind  again  when  she  took  up  the 
Mass  Book. 

These  Mormon  enthusiasts  were  only  suffering  from  a  manifes- 
tation to  which  man  is  subject;  and  we  can  agree  with  a  Mormon 
elder  who,  although  he  left  the  church  disgusted  with  its  extrava- 
gances, afterward  remarked,  "The  man  of  religious  feeling  will 
w\  know  how  to  pity  rather  than  upbraid  that  zeal  without  knowledge 
which  leads  a  man  to  fancy  that  he  has  found  the  ladder  of  Jacob, 
and  that  he  sees  the  angel  of  the  Lord  ascending  and  descending 
before  his  eyes." 

When  Smith  and  Rigdon  reached  Kirtland  they  found  the  new 
church  in  a  state  of  chaos  because  of  these  wild  excitements,  and 
of  an  attempt  to  establish  a  community  of  possessions,  growing  out 
of  Rigdon's  previous  teachings.  These  communists  held  that  what 
belonged  to  one  belonged  to  all,  and  that  they  could  even  use  any 
one's  clothes  or  other  personal  property  without  asking  permission. 
Many  of  the  flock  resented  this,  and  anything  but  a  condition  of 
brotherly  love  resulted.  Smith,  in  his  account  of  the  situation  as 
they  found  it,  says  that  the  members  were  striving  to  do  the  will 
of  God,  "  though  some  had  strange  notions,  and  false  spirits  had 
crept  in  among  them.  With  a  little  caution  and  some  wisdom,  I 
soon  assisted  the  brothers  and  sisters  to  overcome  them.  The  plan 
of  '  common  stock,'  which  had  existed  in  what  was  called  '  the 
family,'  whose  members  generally  had  embraced  the  Everlasting 
Gospel,  was  readily  abandoned  for  the  more  perfect  law  of  the 
Lord,"1  —  which  the  prophet  at  once  expounded. 

Smith  announced  that  the  Lord  had  informed  him  that  the 
ravings  of  the  converts  were  of  the  devil,  and  this  had  a  deterring 
effect ;  but  at  an  important  meeting  of  elders  to  receive  an  endow- 
ment, some  three  months  later,  conducted  by  Smith  himself,  the 
spirits  got  hold  of  some  of  the  elders.  "  It  threw  one  from  his 
seat  to  the  floor,"  says  Corrill.  "  It  bound  another  so  that  for 
some  time  he  could  not  use  his  limbs  or  speak;  and  some  other 
curious  effects  were  experienced.  But  by  a  mighty  exertion,  in 
the  name  of  the  Lord,  it  was  exposed  and  shown  to  be  of  an  evil 
source." 

1  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XIV,  Supt.,  p.  56. 


CHAPTER   III 

GROWTH   OF   THE   CHURCH 

In  order  not  to  interrupt  the  story  of  the  Mormons'  experiences 
in  Ohio,  leaving  the  first  steps  taken  in  Missouri  to  be  treated  in 
connection  with  the  regular  course  of  events  in  that  state,  it  will 
be  sufficient  to  say  here  that  Cowdery,  Pratt,  and  their  two  com- 
panions continued  their  journey  as  far  as  the  western  border  of 
Missouri,  in  the  winter  of  1830  and  183 1,  making  their  headquar- 
ters at  Independence,  Jackson  County ;  that,  on  receipt  of  their 
reports  about  that  country,  Smith  and  Rigdon,  with  others,  made 
a  trip  there  in  June,  1831,  during  which  the  corner-stones  of  the 
City  of  Zion  and  the  Temple  were  laid,  and  officers  were  appointed 
to  receive  money  for  the  purchase  of  the  land  for  the  Saints,  its 
division,  etc.  Smith  and  Rigdon  returned  to  Kirtland  on  August 
27,  1831. 

The  growth  of  the  church  in  Ohio  was  rapid.  In  two  or  three 
weeks  after  the  arrival  of  the  four  pioneer  missionaries,  127  per- 
sons had  been  baptized,  and  by  the  spring  of  1831  the  number  of 
converts  had  increased  to  1000.  Almost  all  the  male  converts 
were  honored  with  the  title  of  elder.  By  a  "  revelation  "  dated 
February  9,  1831  (Sec.  42),  all  of  these  elders,  except  Smith  and 
Rigdon,  were  directed  to  "  go  forth  in  the  power  of  my  spirit, 
preaching  my  Gospel,  two  by  two,  in  my  name,  lifting  up  your 
voices  as  with  the  voice  of  a  trump."  This  was  the  beginning  of 
that  extensive  system  of  proselyting  which  was  soon  extended  to 
Europe,  which  was  so  instrumental  in  augmenting  the  membership 
of  the  church  in  its  earlier  days,  and  which  is  still  carried  on  with 
the  utmost  zeal  and  persistence.  The  early  missionaries  travelled 
north  into  Canada  and  through  almost  all  the  states,  causing  alarm 
even  in  New  England  by  the  success  of  their  work.  One  man 
there,  in  1832,  reprinted  at  his  own  expense  Alexander  Campbell's 

131 


132  THE    STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

pamphlet  exposing  the  ridiculous  features  of  the  Mormon  Bible, 
for  distribution  as  an  offset  to  the  arguments  of  the  elders. 
Women  of  means  were  among  those  who  moved  to  Kirtland  from 
Massachusetts.  In  three  years  after  Smith  and  Rigdon  met  in 
Palmyra,  Mormon  congregations  had  been  established  in  nearly 
all  the  Northern  and  Middle  states  and  in  some  of  the  Southern, 
with  baptisms  of  from  30  to  130  in  a  place.1 

Smith  had  relaxed  none  of  his  determination  to  be  the  one 
head  of  the  church.  As  soon  as  he  arrived  in  Kirtland  he  put 
forth  a  long  "  revelation  "  (Sec.  43)  which  left  Rigdon  no  doubt  of 
the  prophet's  intentions.  It  declared  to  the  elders  that  "  there  is 
none  other  [but  Smith]  appointed  unto  you  to  receive  command- 
ments and  revelations  until  he  be  taken,"  and  that  "  none  else  shall 
be  appointed  unto  his  gift  except  it  be  through  him."  Not  only 
was  Smith's  spiritual  power  thus  intrenched,  but  his  temporal 
welfare  was  looked  after.  "  And  again  I  say  unto  you,"  continues 
this  mouthpiece  of  the  Lord,  "if  ye  desire  the  mysteries  of  the 
Kingdom,  provide  for  him  food  and  raiment  and  whatsoever  he 
needeth  to  accomplish  the  work  wherewith  I  have  commanded  him." 
In  the  same  month  came  another  declaration,  saying  (Sec.  41), 
"  It  is  meet  that  my  servant  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  should  have  a  house 
built,  in  which  to  live  and  translate "  (the  Scriptures).  With  a 
streak  of  generosity  it  was  added,  "  It  is  meet  that  my  servant 
Sidney  Rigdon  should  live  as  seemeth  him  good." 

The  iron  hand  with  which  Smith  repressed  Rigdon  from  the 
date  of  their  arrival  in  Ohio  affords  strong  proof  of  Rigdon's  com- 
plicity in  the  Bible  plot,  and  of  Smith's  realization  of  the  fact  that 
he  stood  to  his  accomplice  in  the  relation  of  a  burglar  to  his  mate, 
where  the  burglar  has  both  the  boodle  and  the  secret  in  his  posses- 
sion. An  illustration  of  this  occurred  during  their  first  trip  to 
Missouri.  Rigdon  and  Smith  did  not  agree  about  the  desirability 
of  western  Missouri  as  a  permanent  abiding-place  for  the  church. 
The  Rev.  Ezra  Booth,  after  leaving  the  Mormons,  contributed  a 
series  of  letters  on  his  experience  with  Smith  to  the  Ohio  Star  of 
Ravenna.2  In  the  first  of  these  he  said  :  "  On  our  arrival  in  the 
western  part  of  the  state  of  Missouri  we  discovered  that  prophecy 
and  visions  had  failed,  or  rather  had  proved  false.     This  fact  was 

1  Turner's  "  Mormonism  in  all  Ages,"  p.  38. 

2  Copied  in  Howe's  "  Mormonism  Unveiled." 


GROWTH   OF   THE   CHURCH  1 33 

so  notorious  that  Mr.  Rigdon  himself  says  that  '  Joseph's  vision 
was  a  bad  thing.'  "  Smith  nevertheless  directed  Rigdon  to  write 
a  description  of  that  promised  land,  and,  when  the  production  did 
not  suit  him,  he  represented  the  Lord  as  censuring  Rigdon  in  a 
"revelation"  (Sec.  63):  — 

"  And  now  behold,  verily  I  say  unto  you,  I,  the  Lord,  am  not  pleased  with 
my  servant  Sidney  Rigdon ;  he  exalteth  himself  in  his  heart,  and  receiveth  not 
counsel,  but  grieveth  the  spirit.  Wherefore  his  writing  is  not  acceptable  unto 
the  Lord ;  and  he  shall  make  another,  and  if  the  Lord  receiveth  it  not,  behold  he 
standeth  no  longer  in  the  office  which  I  have  appointed  him." 

That  the  proud-minded,  educated  preacher,  who  refused  to 
allow  Campbell  to  claim  the  foundership  of  the  Disciples'  church, 
should  take  such  a  rebuke  and  threat  of  dismissal  in  silence  from 
Joe  Smith  of  Palmyra,  and  continue  under  his  leadership,  cer- 
tainly indicates  some  wonderful  hold  that  the  prophet  had  upon 
him. 

While  the  travelling  elders  were  doing  successful  work  in 
adding  new  converts  to  the  fold,  there  was  beginning  to  manifest 
itself  at  Kirtland  that  "  apostasy "  which  lost  the  church  so 
many  members  of  influence,  and  was  continued  in  Missouri  so  far 
that  Mayor  Grant  said,  in  Salt  Lake  City,  in  1856,  that  "one-half 
at  least  of  the  Yankee  members  of  this  church  have  apostatized."  x 
The  secession  of  men  like  Booth  and  Ryder,  and  their  public 
exposure  of  Smith's  methods,  coupled  with  rumors  of  immoral 
practices  in  the  fold,  were  followed  by  the  tarring  and  feathering 
of  Smith  and  Rigdon  on  the  night  of  Saturday,  March  25,  1832. 
The  story  of  this  outrage  is  told  in  Smith's  autobiography,  and 
the  details  there  given  may  be  in  the  main  accepted. 

Smith  and  his  wife  were  living  at  the  house  of  a  farmer  named 
Johnson  in  Hiram  township,  while  he  and  Rigdon  were  translating 
the  Scriptures.  Mrs.  Smith  had  taken  two  infant  twins  to  bring 
up,  and  on  the  night  in  question  she  and  her  husband  were  taking 
turns  sitting  up  with  these  babies,  who  were  just  recovering  from 
the  measles.  While  Smith  was  sleeping,  his  wife  heard  a  tapping 
on  the  window,  but  gave  it  no  attention.  The  mob,  believing  that 
all  within  were  asleep,  then  burst  in  the  door,  seized  Smith  as  he 
lay  partly  dressed  on  a  trundle  bed,  and  rushed  him  out  of  doors, 

1  Journal  of  Discourses,  Vol.  Ill,  p.  201. 


134  THE   STORY   OF  THE   MORMONS 

his  wife  crying  "  murder."  Smith  struggled  as  best  he  could,  but 
they  carried  him  around  the  house,  choking  him  until  he  became 
unconscious.  Some  thirty  yards  from  the  house  he  saw  Rigdon, 
"  stretched  out  on  the  ground,  whither  they  had  dragged  him  by 
the  heels."  When  they  had  carried  Smith  some  thirty  yards 
farther,  some  of  the  mob  meantime  asking,  "Ain't  ye  going  to 
kill  him  ? "  a  council  was  held  and  some  one  asked,  "  Simmons, 
where's  the  tar-bucket  ?  "  When  the  bucket  was  brought  up  they 
tried  to  force  the  "tar-paddle"  into  Smith's  mouth,  and  also,  he 
says,  to  force  a  phial  between  his  teeth.     He  adds  :  — 

"  All  my  clothes  were  torn  off  me  except  my  shirt  collar,  and  one  man  fell  on 
me  and  scratched  my  body  with  his  nails  like  a  mad  cat.  They  then  left  me,  and 
I  attempted  to  rise,  but  fell  again.  I  pulled  the  tar  away  from  my  lips,  etc.,  so  that 
I  could  breathe  more  freely,  and  after  a  while  I  began  to  recover,  and  raised  myself 
up,  when  I  saw  two  lights.  I  made  my  way  toward  one  of  them,  and  found  it  was 
father  Johnson's.  When  I  had  come  to  the  door  I  was  naked,  and  the  tar  made 
me  look  as  though  I  had  been  covered  with  blood ;  and  when  my  wife  saw  me 
she  thought  I  was  all  smashed  to  pieces,  and  fainted.  During  the  affray  abroad, 
the  sisters  of  the  neighborhood  collected  at  my  room.  I  called  for  a  blanket ; 
they  tfcrew  me  one  and  shut  the  door ;  I  wrapped  it  around  me  and  went  in.  .  .  . 
My  friends  spent  the  night  in  scraping  and  removing  the  tar  and  washing  and 
cleansing  my  body,  so  that  by  morning  I  was  ready  to  be  clothed  again.  .  .  . 
With  my  flesh  all  scarified  and  defaced,  I  preached  [that  morning]  to  the 
congregation  as  usual,  and  in  the  afternoon  of  the  same  day  baptized  three 
individuals." 

Rigdon's  treatment  is  described  as  still  more  severe.  He  was 
not  only  dragged  over  the  ground  by  the  heels,  but  was  well 
covered  with  tar  and  feathers ;  and  when  Smith  called  on  him 
the  next  day  he  found  him  delirious,  and  calling  for  a  razor  with 
which  to  kill  his  wife. 

All  Mormon  accounts  of  this,  as  well  as  later  persecutions, 
attempt  to  make  the  ground  of  attack  hostility  to  the  Mormon 
religions  beliefs,  presenting  them  entirely  in  the  light  of  outrages 
on  liberty  of  opinion.  Symonds  Ryder  (whom  Smith  accuses  of 
being  one  of  the  mob),  says  that  the  attack  had  this  origin :  The 
people  of  Hiram  had  the  reputation  of  being  very  receptive  and 
liberal  in  their  religious  views.  The  Mormons  therefore  preached 
to  them,  and  seemed  in  a  fair  way  to  win  a  decided  success,  when 
the  leaders  made  their  first  trip  to  Missouri.  Papers  which  they 
left  behind  outlining  the  internal  system  of  the  new  church  fell 


GROWTH   OF   THE   CHURCH  1 35 

into  the  hands  of  some  of  the  converts,  and  "  revealed  to  them  the 
horrid  fact  that  a  plot  was  laid  to  take  their  property  from  them 
and  place  it  under  the  control  of  Smith,  the  Prophet.  .  .  .  Some 
who  had  been  the  dupes  of  this  deception  determined  not  to  let  it 
pass  with  impunity ;  and,  accordingly,  a  company  was  formed  of 
citizens  from  Shalersville,  Garretsville,  and  Hiram,  and  took 
Smith  and  Rigdon  from  their  beds  and  tarred  and  feathered 
them."1 

This  manifestation  of  hostility  to  the  leaders  of  the  new  church 
was  only  a  more  pronounced  form  of  that  which  showed  itself 
against  Smith  before  he  left  New  York  State.  When  a  man  of 
his  character  and  previous  history  assumes  the  right  to  baptize 
and  administer  the  sacrament,  he  is  certain  to  arouse  the  animos- 
ity, not  only  of  orthodox  church  members,  but  of  members  of  the 
community  who  are  lax  in  their  church  duties.  Goldsmith  illus- 
trates this  kind  of  feeling  when,  in  "  She  Stoops  to  Conquer,"  he 
makes  one  of  the  "  several  shabby  fellows  with  punch  and  tobacco  " 
in  the  alehouse  say,  "  I  loves  to  hear  him  [the  squire]  sing,  be- 
keays  he  never  gives  us  nothing  that's  low,"  and  another  responds, 
"  O,  damn  anything  that's  low."  The  Anti-Mormon  feeling  was 
intensified  and  broadened  by  the  aggressiveness  with  which  the 
Mormons  sought  for  converts  in  the  orthodox  flocks. 

Beliefs  radically  different  from  those  accepted  by  any  of  the 
orthodox  denominations  have  escaped  hostile  opposition  in  this 
country,  even  when  they  have  outraged  generally  accepted  social 
customs.  The  Harmonists,  in  a  body  of  600,  emigrated  to  Penn- 
sylvania to  escape  the  persecution  to  which  they  were  subjected 
in  Germany,  purchased  5000  acres  of  land  and  organized  a  town  ; 
moved  later  to  Indiana,  where  they  purchased  25,000  acres;  and 
ten  years  afterward  returned  to  Pennsylvania,  and  bought  5000 
acres  in  another  place,  —  all  the  time  holding  to  their  belief  in  a 
community  of  goods  and  a  speedy  coming  of  Christ,  as  well  as  the 
duty  of  practicing  celibacy,  —  without  exciting  their  neighbors  or 
arousing  their  enmity.  The  Wallingford  Community  in  Connecti- 
cut, and  the  Oneida  Community  in  New  York  State,  practised 
free  love  among  themselves  without  persecution,  until  their  organ- 
izations died  from  natural  causes.  The  leaders  in  these  and  other 
independent  sects  were  clean  men  within  their  own  rules,  honest 

1  Hayden's  "  Early  History  of  the  Disciples'  Church  in  the  Western  Reserve,"  p.  221. 


136  THE   STORY   OF  THE   MORMONS 

in  their  dealings  with  their  neighbors,  never  seeking  political 
power,  and  never  pressing  their  opinions  upon  outsiders.  An  old 
resident  of  Wallingford  writes  to  me,  "  The  Community  were,  in 
a  way,  very  generally  respected  for  their  high  standard  of  integ- 
rity in  all  their  business  transactions." 

As  we  follow  the  career  of  the  Mormons  from  Ohio  to  Missouri, 
and  thence  to  Illinois,  we  shall  read  their  own  testimony  about  the 
character  of  their  leading  men,  and  about  their  view  of  the  rights 
of  others  in  each  of  their  neighborhoods.  When  Horace  Greeley 
asked  Brigham  Young  in  Salt  Lake  City  for  an  explanation  of  the 
"persecutions"  of  the  Mormons,  his  reply  was  that  there  was  "no 
other  explanation  than  is  afforded  by  the  crucifixion  of  Christ  and 
the  kindred  treatment  of  God's  ministers,  prophets,  and  saints  in 
all  ages  "  ;  which  led  Greeley  to  observe  that,  while  a  new  sect  is 
always  decried  and  traduced,  —  naming  the  Baptists,  Quakers, 
Methodists,  and  Universalists,  —  he  could  not  remember  "  that 
either  of  them  was  ever  generally  represented  and  regarded 
by  the  other  sects  of  their  early  days  as  thieves,  robbers,  and 
murderers."  * 

Another  attempt  by  Rigdon  to  assert  his  independence  of 
Smith  occurred  while  the  latter  was  still  at  Mr.  Johnson's  house 
and  Rigdon  was  in  Kirtland.  The  fullest  account  of  this  is  found 
in  Mother  Smith's  "  History,"  pp.  204-206.  She  says  that  Rigdon 
came  in  late  to  a  prayer-meeting,  much  agitated,  and,  instead  of 
taking  the  platform,  paced  backward  and  forward  on  the  floor. 
Joseph's  father  told  him  they  would  like  to  hear  a  discourse  from 
him,  but  he  replied,  "  The  keys  of  the  Kingdom  are  rent  from  the 
church,  and  there  shall  not  be  a  prayer  put  up  in  this  house  this 
day."  This  caused  considerable  excitement,  and  Smith's  brother 
Hyrum  left  the  house,  saying,  "  I'll  put  a  stop  to  this  fuss  pretty 
quick,"  and,  mounting  a  horse,  set  out  for  Johnson's  and  brought 
the  prophet  back  with  him.  On  his  arrival,  a  meeting  of  the 
brethren  was  held,  and  Joseph  declared  to  them,  "  I  myself  hold 
the  keys  of  this  Last  Dispensation,  and  will  forever  hold  them, 
both  in  time  and  eternity,  so  set  your  hearts  at  rest  upon  that 
point.  All  is  right."  The  next  day  Rigdon  was  tried  before  a 
council  for  having  "  lied  in  the  name  of  the  Lord,"  and  was  "  de- 
livered over  to  the  buffetings  of  Satan,"  and  deprived  of  his  license, 

1  "Overland  Journey,"  p.  214. 


GROWTH   OF  THE   CHURCH  1 37 

Smith  telling  him  that  "  the  less  priesthood  he  had,  the  better  it 
would  be  for  him."  Rigdon,  Mrs.  Smith  says,  according  to  his 
own  account,  "  was  dragged  out  of  bed  by  the  devil  three  times 
in  one  night  by  the  heels,"  and,  while  she  does  not  accept  this  lit- 
erally, she  declares  that  "his  contrition  was  as  great  as  a  man 
could  well  live  through."     After  awhile  he  got  another  license. 


CHAPTER  IV 
GIFTS  OF  TONGUES  AND  MIRACLES 

In  January,  1833,  Smith  announced  a  revival  of  the  "gift  of 
tongues,"  and  instituted  the  ceremony  of  washing  the  feet.1  Un- 
der the  new  system,  Smith  or  Rigdon,  during  a  meeting,  would 
call  on  some  brother,  or  sister,  saying,  "  Father  A.,  if  you  will 
rise  in  the  name  of  Jesus  Christ  you  can  speak  in  tongues."  The 
rule  which  persons  thus  called  on  were  to  follow  was  thus  explained, 
"  Arise  upon  your  feet,  speak  or  make  some  sound,  continue  to 
make  sounds  of  some  kind,  and  the  Lord  will  make  a  language  of 
it."  It  was  not  necessary  that  the  words  should  be  understood  by 
the  congregation ;  some  other  Mormon  would  undertake  their  in- 
terpretation. Much  ridicule  was  incurred  by  the  church  because 
of  this  kind  of  revelation.  Gunnison  relates  that  when  a  woman 
"speaking  in  tongues"  pronounced  "  meliar,  meli,  melee,"  it  was 
at  once  translated  by  a  young  wag,  "  my  leg,  my  thigh,  my  knee," 
and,  when  he  was  called  before  the  Council  charged  with  irrever- 
ence, he'  persisted  in  his  translation,  but  got  off  with  an  admoni- 
tion.2 At  a  meeting  in  Nauvoo  in  later  years  a  doubting  convert 
delivered  an  address  in  real  Choctaw,  whereupon  a  woman  jumped 
up  and  offered  as  a  translation  an  account  of  the  glories  of  the  new 
Temple. 

At  the  conference  of  June  4,  1831,  Smith  ordained  Elder 
Wright  to  the  high  priesthood  for  service  among  the  Indians, 
with  the  gift  of  tongues,  healing  the  sick,  etc.  Wright  at  once 
declared  that  he  saw  the  Saviour.  At  one  of  the  sessions  at  Kirt- 
land  at  this  time,  as  described  by  an  eye-witness,  Smith  announced 
that  the  day  would  come  when  no  man  would  be  permitted  to 
preach  unless  he  had  seen  the  Lord  face  to  face.  Then,  address- 
ing Rigdon,  he  asked,  "  Sidney,  have  you  seen  the  Lord  ?  "     The 

1  This  ceremony  has  fallen  into  disuse  in  Utah. 
2 "The  Mormons,"  p.  74. 
138 


GIFTS    OF   TONGUES   AND    MIRACLES  1 39 

obedient  Sidney  made  reply,  "  I  saw  the  image  of  a  man  pass  be- 
fore my  face,  whose  locks  were  white,  and  whose  countenance  was 
exceedingly  fair,  even  surpassing  all  beauty  that  I  ever  beheld." 
Smith  at  once  rebuked  him  by  telling  him  that  he  would  have  seen 
more  but  for  his  unbelief. 

Almost  simultaneously  with  Smith's  first  announcement  of  his 
prophetic  powers,  while  working  his  "  peek-stone "  in  Pennsyl- 
vania and  New  York,  he,  as  we  have  seen,  claimed  ability  to  per- 
form miracles,  and  he  announced  that  he  had  cast  out  a  devil  at 
Colesville  in  1830.1  The  performance  of  miracles  became  an  es- 
sential part  of  the  church  work  at  Kirtland,  and  had  a  great  effect 
on  the  superstitious  converts.  The  elders,  who  in  the  early  days 
labored  in  England,  laid  great  stress  on  their  miraculous  power,  and 
there  were  some  amusing  exposures  of  their  pretences.  The  Mil- 
lennial Star  printed  a  long  list  of  successful  miracles  dating  from 
1839  to  1850,  including  the  deaf  made  to  hear,  the  blind  to  see, 
dislocated  bones  put  in  place,  leprosy  and  cholera  cured,  and  fevers 
rebuked.  Smith,  Rigdon,  and  Cowdery  took  a  leading  part  in  this 
work  at  Kirtland.2  To  a  man  nearly  dead  with  consumption  Rig- 
don gave  assurance  that  he  would  recover  "  as  sure  as  there  is  a 
God  in  heaven."  The  man's  death  soon  followed.  When  a  child, 
whose  parents  had  been  persuaded  to  trust  its  case  to  Mormon 
prayers  instead  of  calling  a  physician,3  died,  Smith  and  Rigdon 
promised  that  it  would  rise  from  the  dead,  and  they  went  through 
certain  ceremonies  to  accomplish  that  object.4 

The  lengths  to  which  Smith  dared  go  in  his  pretensions  are 
well  illustrated  in  an  incident  of  these  days.     Among  the  curios- 

1  For  particulars  of  this  miracle,  see  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XIV,  pp.  28,  32. 

2  While  Smith  was  in  Washington  in  1 840,  pressing  on  the  federal  authorities  the 
claims  of  the  Mormons  for  redress  for  their  losses  in  Missouri,  he  preached  on  the 
church  doctrines.  A  member  of  Congress  who  heard  him  sent  a  synopsis  of  the  dis- 
course to  his  wife,  and  Smith  printed  this  entire  in  his  autobiography  {Millennial 
Star,  Vol.  XVII,  p.  583).  Here  is  one  passage:  "He  [Smith]  performed  no  miracles. 
He  did  not  pretend  to  possess  any  such  power."  This  is  an  illustration  of  the  facility 
with  which  Smith  could  lie,  when  to  do  so  would  serve  his  purpose. 

3  The  Saints  were  early  believers  in  faith  cure.  Smith,  in  a  sermon  preached  in 
1841,  urged  them  "  to  trust  in  God  when  sick,  and  live  by  faith  and  not  by  medicine  or 
poison"  {Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XVIII,  p.  663).  A  coroner's  jury,  in  an  inquest  over 
a  victim  of  this  faith  in  London,  England,  cautioned  the  sect  against  continuing  this 
method  of  curing  (  Times  and  Seasons,  1842,  p.  813). 

4  For  further  illustrations  of  miracle  working  in  Ohio,  see  Kennedy's  "  Early  Days 
of  Mormonism,"  Chap.  V. 


140 


THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 


ities  of  a  travelling  showman  who  passed  through  Kirtland  were 
some  Egyptian  mummies.  As  the  golden  plates  from  which  the 
Mormon  Bible  was  translated  were  written  in  "  reformed  Egyp- 
tian," the  translator  of  those  plates  was  interested  in  all  things 
coming  from  Egypt,  and  at  his  suggestion  the  mummies  were  pur- 
chased by  and  for  the  church.  On  them  were  found  some  papyri 
which  Joseph,  with  the  assistance  of  Phelps  and  Cowdery,  set  about 
"translating."  Their  success  was  great,  and  Smith  was  able  to 
announce  :  "  We  found  that  one  of  these  rolls  contained  the  writ- 
ings of  Abraham,  another  the  writings  of  Joseph.1  Truly  we  could 
see  that  the  Lord  is  beginning  to  reveal  the  abundance  of  truth." 
That  there  might  be  no  question  about  the  accuracy  of  Smith's 
translation,  he  exhibited  a  certificate  signed  by  the  proprietor 
of  the  show,  saying  that  he  had  exhibited  the  "  hieroglyphic 
characters"  to  the  most  learned  men  in  many  cities,  "and 
from  all  the  information  that  I  could  ever  learn  or  meet  with,  I 
find  that  of  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  to  correspond  in  the  most  minute 
matters." 

Smith's  autobiography  contains  this  memorandum  :  "  October  i, 
1835.  This  afternoon  I  labored  on  the  Egyptian  alphabet  in  com- 
pany with  Brother  O.  Cowdery  and  W.  W.  Phelps,  and  during  the 
research  the  principals  of  astronomy,  as  understood  by  Father 
Abraham  and  the  Ancients,  unfolded  to  our  understanding." 
When  he  was  in  the  height  of  his  power  in  Nauvoo,  Smith  printed 
in  the  Times  and  Seasons  a  reproduction  of  these  hieroglyphics  ac- 
companied by  this  alleged  translation,  of  what  he  called  "the 
Book  of  Abraham,"  and  they  were  also  printed  in  the  Millennial 
Star?  The  translation  was  a  meaningless  jumble  of  words  after 
this  fashion :  — 

"  In  the  land  of  the  Chaldeans,  at  the  residence  of  my  father,  I,  Abraham,  saw 
that  it  was  needful  for  me  to  obtain  another  place  of  residence,  and  finding  there 
was  greater  happiness  and  peace  and  rest  for  me,  I  sought  for  the  blessings  of  the 
Fathers,  and  the  right  whereunto  I  should  be  ordained  to  administer  the  same, 
having  been  myself  a  follower  of  righteousness,  desiring  to  be  one  also  who  pos- 

1  When  the  papyri  were  shown  to  Josiah  Quincy  and  Charles  Francis  Adams,  on 
the  occasion  of  their  visit  to  Nauvoo  in  1844,  Joseph  Smith,  pointing  out  the  inscrip- 
tions, said  :  "  That  is  the  handwriting  of  Abraham,  the  Father  of  the  Faithful.  This  is 
the  autograph  of  Moses,  and  these  lines  were  written  by  his  brother  Aaron.  Here  we 
have  the  earliest  account  of  the  creation,  from  which  Moses  composed  the  first  Book  of 
Genesis."  —  "Figures  of  the  Past,"  p.  386. 

2  See  Vol.  XIX,  p.  100,  etc.,  from  which  the  accompanying  facsimile  is  taken. 


U',7„!V  i .:--.  .it.  wl,i.-li  r  itn,.  I  ex-  ,  of  the  [took  of  Abrahum  iii    the   Ti.nM 
cm.  i  iijiiii  ■  mt  |irii)cip!fs  in  re-    ami  Seasons,  us  follows — 

I'AC -SIM1I.I-:  I'KOli  TIIF,  BOOK   OV   AIJKAIIAM.     No.   ]. 


EXPLANATION  OF  THE  ABOVE  CUT. 
.,'.  1.     The  angel  of  the  Lord. 

'-'.     Abraham  fastened  upon  an  altar. 

■       The  idolatrous  priest  of  F.lkenah  attempting  to  offer  nn  Abraham  as  a  sacrifice. ' 


GIFTS   OF   TONGUES   AND   MIRACLES  141 

sessed  great  knowledge,  and  to  possess  greater  knowledge,  and  to  be  a  greater 
follower  of  righteousness." 

Remy  submitted  a  reproduction  of  these  hieroglyphics  to  The- 
odule  Deveria,  of  the  Museum  of  the  Louvre,  in  Paris,  who  found, 
of  course,  that  Smith's  purported  translation  was  wholly  fraudulent. 
For  instance,  his  Abraham  fastened  on  an  altar  was  a  representa- 
tion of  Osiris  coming  to  life  on  his  funeral  couch,  his  officiating 
priest  was  the  god  Anubis,  and  what  Smith  represents  to  indicate 
an  angel  of  the  Lord  is  "the  soul  of  Osiris,  under  the  form  of  a 
hawk."1  Smith's  whole  career  offered  no  more  brazen  illustration 
of  his  impostures  than  this. 

A  visitor  to  the  Kirtland  Temple  some  years  later  paid  Joseph's 
father  half  a  dollar  in  order  to  see  the  Egyptian  curios,  which  were 
kept  in  the  attic  of  that  structure. 

A  well-authenticated  anecdote,  giving  another  illustration  of 
Smith's  professed  knowledge  of  the  Egyptian  language  is  told  by 
the  Rev.  Henry  Caswall,  M.A.,  who,  after  holding  the  Professor- 
ship of  Divinity  in  Kemper  College,  in  Missouri,  became  vicar  of 
a  church  in  England.  Mr.  Caswall,  on  the  occasion  of  a  visit  to 
Nauvoo  in  1842,  having  heard  of  Smith's  Egyptian  lore,  took  with 
him  an  ancient  Greek  manuscript  of  the  Psalter,  on  parchment, 
with  which  to  test  the  prophet's  scholarship.  The  belief  of  Smith's 
followers  in  his  powers  was  shown  by  their  eagerness  to  have 
him  see  this  manuscript,  and  their  persistence  in  urging  Mr.  Cas- 
wall to  wait  a  day  for  Smith's  return  from  Carthage  that  he  might 
submit  it  to  the  prophet.  Mr.  Caswall  the  next  day  handed  the 
manuscript  to  Smith  and  asked  him  to  explain  its  contents.  After 
a  brief  examination,  Smith  explained  :  "  It  ain't  Greek  at  all,  ex- 
cept perhaps  a  few  words.  What  ain't  Greek  is  Egyptian,  and 
what  ain't  Egyptian  is  Greek.  This  book  is  very  valuable.  It  is 
a  dictionary  of  Egyptian  hieroglyphics.  These  figures  [pointing 
to  the  capitals]  is  Egyptian  hieroglyphics  written  in  the  reformed 
Egyptian.  These  characters  are  like  the  letters  that  were  en- 
graved on  the  golden  plates."  2 

1  See  "A  Journey  to  Great  Salt  Lake  City,"  by  Jules  Remy  (1861),  Note  XVII. 

2  "The  City  of  the  Mormons,"  p.  36  (1842). 


CHAPTER  V 

SMITH'S   OHIO   BUSINESS   ENTERPRISES 

When  Rigdon  returned  to  Ohio  with  Smith  in  January,  1831, 
it  seems  to  have  been  his  intention  to  make  Kirtland  the  perma- 
nent headquarters  of  the  new  church.  He  had  written  to  his 
people  from  Palmyra,  "Be  it  known  to  you,  brethren,  that  you 
are  dwelling  on  your  eternal  inheritance."  When  Cowdery  and  his 
associates  arrived  in  Ohio  on  their  first  trip,  they  announced  as 
the  boundaries  of  the  Promised  Land  the  township  of  Kirtland  on 
the  east  and  the  Pacific  Ocean  on  the  west.  Within  two  months 
of  his  arrival  at  Kirtland  Smith  gave  out  a  "  revelation  "  (Sec.  45), 
in  which  the  Lord  commanded  the  elders  to  go  forth  into  the  west- 
ern countries  and  build  up  churches,  and  they  were  told  of  a  City 
of  Refuge  for  the  church,  to  be  called  the  New  Jerusalem.  No 
definite  location  of  this  city  was  given,  and  the  faithful  were 
warned  to  "  keep  these  things  from  going  abroad  unto  the  world." 
Another  "revelation"  of  the  same  month  (Sec.  48)  announced 
that  it  was  necessary  for  all  to  remain  for  the  present  in  their 
places  of  abode,  and  directed  those  who  had  lands  "  to  impart  to 
the  eastern  brethren,"  and  the  others  to  buy  lands,  and  all  to  save 
money  "to  purchase  lands  for  an  inheritance,  even  the  city." 

The  reports  of  those  who  first  went  to  Missouri  induced  Smith 
and  Rigdon,  before  they  made  their  first  trip  to  that  state,  to  an- 
nounce that  the  Saints  would  pass  one  more  winter  in  Ohio.  But 
when  they  had  visited  the  Missouri  frontier  and  realized  its  dis- 
tance from  even  the  Ohio  border  line,  and  the  actual  privations  to 
which  settlers  there  must  submit,  their  zeal  weakened,  and  they 
declared,  "It  will  be  many  years  before  we  come  here,  for  the 
Lord  has  a  great  work  for  us  to  do  in  Ohio."  The  building  of  the 
Temple  at  Kirtland,  and  the  investments  in  lots  and  in  business 
enterprises  there  showed  that  a  permanent  settlement  in  Ohio  was 

then  decided  on. 

142 


SMITH'S   OHIO   BUSINESS   ENTERPRISES  143 

Smith's  first  business  enterprise  for  the  church  in  Ohio  was  a 
general  store  which  he  opened  in  Hiram.  This  establishment  has 
been  described  as  "  a  poorly  furnished  country  store  where  com- 
merce looks  starvation  in  the  face."  1  The  difficulty  of  combining 
the  positions  of  prophet,  head  of  the  church,  and  retail  merchant 
was  naturally  great.  The  result  of  the  combination  has  been 
graphically  pictured  by  no  less  an  authority  than  Brigham  Young. 
In  a  discourse  in  Salt  Lake  City,  explaining  why  the  church  did 
not  maintain  a  store  there,  Young  said  :  — 

"You  that  have  lived  in  Nauvoo,  in  Missouri,  in  Kirtland,  O.,  can  you  assign 
a  reason  why  Joseph  could  not  keep  a  store  and  be  a  merchant  ?  Let  me  just 
give  you  a  few  reasons  ;  and  there  are  men  here  who  know  just  how  matters  went 
in  those  days.  Joseph  goes  to  New  York  and  buys  $20,000  worth  of  goods, 
comes  into  Kirtland  and  commences  to  trade.  In  comes  one  of  the  brethren. 
'  Brother  Joseph,  let  me  have  a  frock  pattern  for  my  wife.'  What  if  Joseph  says, 
'  No,  I  cannot  without  money.1  The  consequence  would  be,  '  He  is  no  Prophet,' 
says  James.  Pretty  soon  Thomas  walks  in.  'Brother  Joseph,  will  you  trust  me 
for  a  pair  of  boots  ? '  '  No,  I  cannot  let  them  go  without  money.'  '  Well,'  says 
Thomas, '  Brother  Joseph  is  no  Prophet ;  I  have  found  that  out  and  I  am  glad  of 
it.'  After  a  while  in  comes  Bill  and  Sister  Susan.  Says  Bill,  '  Brother  Joseph, 
I  want  a  shawl.  I  have  not  got  any  money,  but  I  wish  you  to  trust  me  a  week  or 
a  fortnight.'  Well,  Brother  Joseph  thinks  the  others  have  gone  and  apostatized, 
and  he  don't  know  but  these  goods  will  make  the  whole  church  do  the  same,  so 
he  lets  Bill  have  a  shawl.  Bill  walks  off  with  it  and  meets  a  brother.  '  Well,' 
says  he,  'what  do  you  think  of  Brother  Joseph  ?'  '  O,  he  is  a  first  rate  man,  and 
I  fully  believe  he  is  a  Prophet.  He  has  trusted  me  this  shawl.'  Richard  says,  '  I 
think  I  will  go  down  and  see  if  he  won't  trust  me  some.'  In  walks  Richard. 
'  Brother  Joseph,  I  want  to  trade  about  $20.'  '  Well,'  says  Joseph,  '  these  goods 
will  make  the  people  apostatize,  so  over  they  go  ;  they  are  of  less  value  than  the 
people.'  Richard  gets  his  goods.  Another  comes  in  the  same  way  to  make  a 
trade  of  $25,  and  so  it  goes.  Joseph  was  a  first  rate  fellow  with  them  all  the 
time,  provided  he  never  would  ask  them  to  pay  him.  And  so  you  may  trace  it 
down  through  the  history  of  this  people."2 

If  this  analysis  of  the  flock  which  Smith  gathered  in  Ohio,  and 
which  formed  the  nucleus  of  the  settlements  in  Missouri,  was  not 
permanently  recorded  in  an  official  church  record,  its  authenticity 
would  be  vigorously  assailed. 

Later  enterprises  at  Kirtland,  undertaken  under  the  auspices  of 
the  church,  included  a  steam  sawmill  and  a  tannery,  both  of  which 
were  losing  concerns.     But  the  speculation  to  which  later  Mormon 

1  Salt  Lake  Herald,  November  17,  1877. 

2  Journal  of  Discourses,  Vol.  I,  p.  215. 


144  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

authorities  attributed  the  principal  financial  disasters  of  the  church 
at  Kirtland  was  the  purchase  of  land  and  its  sale  as  town  lots.1 
The  craze  for  land  speculation  in  those  days  was  not  confined, 
however,  to  the  Mormons.  That  was  the  period  when  the  pur- 
chase of  public  lands  of  the  United  States  seemed  likely  to  reach 
no  limit.  These  sales,  which  amounted  to  $2,300,000  in  1830,  and 
to  $4,800,000  in  1834,  jumped  to  $14,757,600  in  1835,  and  to 
$24,877,179  in  1836.  The  government  deposits  (then  made  in 
the  state  banks)  increased  from  $10,000,000  on  January  1,  1835, 
to  $41,500,000  on  June  1,  1836,  the  increase  coming  from  receipts 
from  land  sales.  This  led  to  that  bank  expansion  which  was 
measured  by  the  growth  of  bank  capital  in  this  country  —  from 
$61,000,000  to  $200,000,000  between  1830  and  1834,  with  a  fur- 
ther advance  to  $251,000,000. 

The  Mormon  leaders  and  their  people  were  peculiarly  liable  to 
be  led  into  disaster  when  sharing  in  this  speculators'  fever.  They 
were,  however,  quick  to  take  advantage  of  the  spirit  of  the  times. 
The  Zion  of  Missouri  lost  its  attractiveness  to  them,  and  on  Feb- 
ruary 23,  1833,  the  Presidency  decided  to  purchase  land  at  Kirt- 
land, and  to  establish  thereon  a  permanent  Stake  of  Zion.  The 
land  purchases  of  the  church  began  at  once,  and  we  find  a  record 
of  one  Council  meeting,  on  March  23,  1833,  at  which  it  was  de- 
cided to  buy  three  farms  costing  respectively  $4000,  $2100,  and 
$5000.  Kirtland  was  laid  out  (on  paper)  with  32  streets,  cutting 
one  another  at  right  angles,  each  four  rods  wide.  This  provided 
for  225  blocks  of  20  lots  each.  Twenty-nine  of  the  streets  were 
named  after  Mormons.  Joseph  and  his  family  appear  many  times 
in  the  list  of  conveyors  of  these  lots.  The  original  map  of  the 
city,  as  described  in  Smith's  autobiography,  provided  for  24  pub- 
lic buildings  —  temples,  schools,  etc.;  no  lot  to  contain  more  than 
one  house,  and  that  not  to  be  nearer  than  25  feet  from  the  street, 
with  a  prohibition  against  erecting  a  stable  on  a  house  lot.2 

Of  course  this  Mormon  capital  must  have  a  grand  church  edi- 
fice, to  meet  Smith's  views,  and  he  called  a  council  to  decide  about 

lK  Real  estate  rose  from  ioo  to  800  per  cent  and  in  many  cases  more.  Men  who 
were  not  thought  worth  $50  or  $100  became  purchasers  of  thousands.  Notes  (some- 
times cash),  deeds  and  mortgages  passed  and  repassed,  till  all,  or  nearly  all,  supposed 
they  had  become  wealthy,  or  at  least  had  acquired  a  competence." — Messenger  and 
Advocate,  June,  1837. 

2  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XIV,  pp.  438-439. 


SMITH'S    OHIO    BUSINESS    ENTERPRISES  145 

the  character  of  the  new  meeting-house.  A  few  of  the  speakers 
favored  a  modest  frame  building,  but  a  majority  thought  a  log  one 
better  suited  to  their  means.  Joseph  rebuked  the  latter,  asking, 
"  Shall  we,  brethren,  build  a  house  for  our  God  of  logs  ? "  and  he 
straightway  led  them  to  the  corner  of  a  wheat  field,  where  the 
trench  for  the  foundation  was  at  once  begun.1  No  greater  exhibi- 
tion of  business  folly  could  have  been  given  than  the  undertaking 
of  the  costly  building  then  planned  on  so  slender  a  financial 
foundation. 

The  corner-stone  was  laid  on  July  23,  1833,  and  the  Temple 
was  not  dedicated  until  March  27,  1836.  Mormon  devotion  cer- 
tainly showed  itself  while  this  work  was  going  on.  Every  male 
member  was  expected  to  give  one-seventh  of  his  time  to  the  build- 
ing without  pay,  and  those  who  worked  on  it  at  day's  wages  had, 
in  most  instances,  no  other  income,  and  often  lived  on  nothing  but 
corn  meal.  The  women,  as  their  share,  knit  and  wove  garments 
for  the  workmen. 

The  Temple,  which  is  of  stone  covered  with  a  cement  stucco 
(it  is  still  in  use),  measures  60  by  80  feet  on  the  ground,  is  123  feet 
in  height  to  the  top  of  the  spire,  and  contains  two  stories  and  an 
attic. 

The  cost  of  this  Temple  was  $40,000,  and,  notwithstanding  the 
sacrifices  made  by  the  Saints  in  assisting  its  construction,  and  the 
schemes  of  the  church  officers  to  secure  funds,  a  debt  of  from 
$15,000  to  $20,000  remained  upon  it.  That  the  church  was  finan- 
cially embarrassed  at  the  very  beginning  of  the  work  is  shown  by 
a  letter  addressed  to  the  brethren  in  Zion,  Missouri,  by  Smith, 
Rigdon,  and  Williams,  dated  June  25,  1833,  in  which  they  said, 
"  Say  to  Brother  Gilbert  that  we  have  no  power  to  assist  him  in  a 
pecuniary  point,  as  we  know  not  the  hour  when  we  shall  be  sued 
for  debts  which  we  have  contracted  ourselves  in  New  York."2 

To  understand  the  business  crash  and  scandals  which  com- 
pelled Smith  and  his  associates  to  flee  from  Ohio,  it  is  necessary 
to  explain  the  business  system  adopted  by  the  church  under  them. 
This  system  began  with  a  rule  about  the  consecration  of  property. 
As  originally  published  in  the  Evening  and  Morning  Star,  and  in 
chapter  xliv  of  the  "  Book  of  Commandments,"  this  rule  declared, 

1  Mother  Smith's  "  Biographical  Sketches,"  p.  213. 
8  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XIV,  p.  450. 


146  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

"  Thou  shalt  consecrate  all  thy  properties,  that  which  thou  hast, 
unto  me,  with  a  covenant  and  a  deed  which  cannot  be  broken," 
with  a  provision  that  the  Bishop,  after  he  had  received  such  an 
irrevocable  deed,  should  appoint  every  man  a  steward  over  so  much 
of  his  property  as  would  be  sufficient  for  himself  and  family. 
In  the  later  edition  of  the  "  Doctrine  and  Covenants  "  this  was 
changed  to  read,  "  And  behold,  thou  wilt  remember  the  poor,  and 
consecrate  thy  properties  for  their  support,"  etc. 

By  a  "  revelation  "  given  out  while  the  heads  of  the  church 
were  in  Jackson  County,  Missouri,  in  April,  1832  (Sec.  82),  a  sort 
of  firm  was  appointed,  including  Smith,  Rigdon,  Cowdery,  Harris, 
and  N.  K.  Whitney,  "to  manage  the  affairs  of  the  poor,  and  all 
things  pertaining  to  the  bishopric,"  both  in  Ohio  and  Missouri. 
This  firm  thus  assumed  control  of  the  property  which  "revelation  " 
had  placed  in  the  hands  of  the  Bishop.  This  arrangement  was 
known  as  The  Order  of  Enoch.  Next  came  a  "revelation  "  dated 
April  23,  1834  (Sec.  104),  by  which  the  properties  of  the  Order 
were  divided,  Rigdon  getting  the  place  in  which  he  was  living  in 
Kirtland,  and  the  tannery ;  Harris  a  lot,  with  a  command  to 
"  devote  his  monies  for  the  proclaiming  of  my  words  "  ;  Cowdery 
and  Williams,  the  printing-office,  with  some  extra  lots  to  Cowdery ; 
and  Smith,  the  lot  designed  for  the  Temple,  and  "  the  inheritance 
on  which  his  father  resides."  The  building  of  the  Temple  hav- 
ing brought  the  Mormon  leaders  into  debt,  this  "revelation,"  was 
designed  to  help  them  out,  and  it  contained  these  further  direc- 
tions, in  the  voice  of  the  Lord,  be  it  remembered :  — 

"The  covenants  being  broken  through  transgression,  by  covetousness  and 
feigned  words,  therefore  you  are  dissolved  as  a  United  Order  with  your  brethren, 
that  you  are  not  bound  only  up  to  this  hour  unto  them,  only  on  this  wise,  as  I 
said,  by  loan  as  shall  be  agreed  by  this  Order  in  council,  as  your  circumstances 
will  admit,  and  the  voice  of  the  council  direct.   .  .  . 

"  And  again  verily  I  say  unto  you,  concerning  your  debts,  behold  it  is  my 
will  that  you  should  pay  all  your  debts  ;  and  it  is  my  will  that  you  should  humble 
yourselves  before  me,  and  obtain  this  blessing  by  your  diligence  and  humility  and 
the  prayer  of  faith ;  and  inasmuch  as  you  are  diligent  and  humble,  and  exercise 
the  prayer  of  faith,  behold,  I  will  soften  the  hearts  of  those  to  whom  you  are  in 
debt,  until  I  shall  send  means  unto  you  for  your  deliverance.  ...  I  give  you  a 
promise  that  you  shall  be  delivered  this  once  out  of  your  bondage ;  inasmuch  as 
you  obtained  a  chance  to  loan  money  by  hundreds,  or  thousands  even  until  you 
shall  loan  enough  [meaning  borrow]  to  deliver  yourselves  from  bondage,  it  is 
your  privilege ;  and  pledge  the  properties  which  I  have  put  into  your  hands  this 


SMITH'S   OHIO   BUSINESS   ENTERPRISES  147 

once.  .  .  •     The  master  will  not  suffer  his  house  to  be  broken  up.     Even  so. 
Amen." 

It  does  not  appear  that  the  Mormon  leaders  took  advantage 
of  this  authorization  to  borrow  money  on  Kirtland  real  estate,  if 
they  could;  but  in  1835  they  set  up  several  mercantile  establish- 
ments, finding  firms  in  Cleveland,  Buffalo,  and  farther  east  who 
would  take  their  notes  on  six  months'  time.  "  A  great  part  of  the 
goods  of  these  houses,"  says  William  Harris,  "went  to  pay  the 
workmen  on  the  Temple,  and  many  were  sold  on  credit,  so  that 
when  the  notes  became  due  the  houses  were  not  able  to  meet 
them." 

Smith's  autobiography  relates  part  of  one  story  of  an  effort  of 
his  to  secure  money  at  this  trying  time,  the  complete  details  of 
which  have  been  since  supplied.  He  simply  says  that  on  July 
25,  1836,  in  company  with  his  brother  Hyrum,  Sidney  Rigdon, 
and  Oliver  Cowdery,  he  started  on  a  trip  which  brought  them 
to  Salem,  Massachusetts,  where  "  we  hired  a  house  and  occupied 
the  same  during  the  month,  teaching  the  people  from  house  to 
house."  1  The  Mormon  of  to-day,  in  reading  his  "  Doctrine  and 
Covenants,"  finds  Section  in  very  perplexing.  No  place  of  its 
reception  is  given,  but  it  goes  on  to  say :  — 

"  I,  the  Lord  your  God,  am  not  displeased  with  your  coming  this  journey, 
notwithstanding  your  follies ;  I  have  much  treasure  in  this  city  for  you,  for  the 
benefit  of  Zion ;  .  .  .  and  it  shall  come  to  pass  in  due  time,  that  I  will  give  this 
city  into  your  hands,  that  you  shall  have  power  over  it,  insomuch  that  they  shall 
not  discover  your  secret  parts ;  and  its  wealth  pertaining  to  gold  and  silver  shall 
be  yours.  Concern  not  yourself  about  your  debts,  for  I  will  give  you  power  to 
pay  them.  .  .  .  And  inquire  diligently  concerning  the  more  ancient  inhabitants 
and  founders  of  this  city ;  for  there  are  more  treasures  than  one  for  you  in  this 
city." 

"  This  city  "  was  Salem,  Massachusetts,  and  the  "  revelation  " 
was  put  forth  to  brace  up  the  spirits  of  Smith's  fellow-travellers. 
A  Mormon  named  Burgess  had  gone  to  Kirtland  with  a  story 
about  a  large  amount  of  money  that  was  buried  in  the  cellar  of 
a  house  in  Salem  which  had  belonged  to  a  widow,  and  the  location 
of  which  he  alone  knew.  Smith  credited  this  report,  and  looked 
to  the  treasure  to  assist  him  in  his  financial  difficulties,  and  he 
took  the  persons  named  with  him  on  the  trip.     But  when  they 

1  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XV,  p.  281. 


I48  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

got  there  Burgess  said  that  time  had  so  changed  the  appearance 
of  the  houses  that  he  could  not  be  sure  which  was  the  widow's, 
and  he  cleared  out.  Smith  then  hired  a  house  which  he  thought 
might  be  the  right  one,  —  it  proved  not  to  be,  —  and  it  was  when 
his  associates  were  becoming  discouraged  that  the  ex-money-digger 
uttered  the  words  quoted,  to  strengthen  their  courage.  "  We  speak 
of  these  things  with  regret,"  says  Ebenezer  Robinson,  who  be- 
lieved in  the  prophet's  divine  calling  to  the  last.1 

Brought  face  to  face  with  apparent  financial  disaster,  the  next 
step  taken  to  prevent  this  was  the  establishment  of  a  bank.  Smith 
told  of  a  "  revelation  "  concerning  a  bank  "  which  would  swallow 
up  all  other  banks."  An  application  for  a  charter  was  made  to 
the  Ohio  legislature,  but  it  was  refused.  The  law  of  Ohio  at  that 
time  provided  that  "  all  notes  and  bills,  bonds  and  other  securities 
[of  an  unchartered  bank]  shall  be  held  and  taken  in  all  courts  as 
absolutely  void."  This,  however,  did  not  deter  a  man  of  Smith's 
audacity,  and  soon  came  the  announcement  of  the  organization  of 
the  "Kirtland  Safety  Society  Bank,"  with  an  alleged  capital  of 
#4,000,000.  The  articles  of  agreement  had  been  drawn  up  on 
November  2,  1836,  and  Oliver  Cowdery  had  been  sent  to  Philadel- 
phia to  get  the  plates  for  the  notes  at  the  same  time  that  Orson 
Hyde  set  out  to  the  state  capital  to  secure  a  charter.  Cowdery 
took  no  chances  of  failure,  and  he  came  back  not  only  with  a 
plate,  but  with  $200,000  in  printed  bills.  To  avoid  the  inconven- 
ience of  having  no  charter,  the  members  of  the  Safety  Society  met 
on  January  2,  1837,  and  reorganized  under  the  name  of  the  "  Kirt- 
land Society  Anti-banking  Company,"  and,  in  the  hope  of  placing 
the  bills  within  the  law  (or  at  least  beyond  its  reach),  the  word 
"  Bank  "  was  changed  with  a  stamp  so  that  it  read  "  Anti-BANK-ing 
Co.,"  as  in  the  facsimile  here  presented. 

W.  Harris  thus  describes  the  banking  scheme:  — 

"  Subscribers  for  stock  were  allowed  to  pay  the  amount  of  their  subscriptions 
in  town  lots  at  five  or  six  times  their  real  value ;  others  paid  in  personal  property 
at  a  high  valuation,  and  some  were  paid  in  cash.  When  the  notes  were  first 
issued  they  were  current  in  the  vicinity,  and  Smith  took  advantage  of  their  credit 
to  pay  off  with  them  the  debts  he  and  his  brethren  had  contracted  in  the  neigh- 
borhood for  land,  etc.  The  Eastern  creditors,  however,  refused  to  take  them. 
This  led  to  the  expedient  of  exchanging  them  for  the  notes  of  other  banks. 

1  The  Return,  July,  1889. 


SMITH'S    OHIO   BUSINESS    ENTERPRISES 


149 


Accordingly,  the  Elders  were  sent  into  the  country  to  barter  off  Kirtland  money, 
which  they  did  with  great  zeal,  and  continued  the  operation  until  the  notes  were 
not  worth  twelve  and  a  half  cents  to  the  dollar."  1 

Just  how  much  of  this  currency  was  issued  the  records  do  not 
show.  Hall  says  that  Brigham  Young,  who  had  joined  the  flock 
at  Kirtland,  disposed  of  $10,000  worth  of  it  in  the  States,  and  that 
Smith  and  other  church  officers  reaped  a  rich  harvest  with  it  in 
Canada,  explaining,  "  The  credit  of  the  bank  here  was  good,  even 
high."2  Kidder  quotes  a  gentleman  living  near  Kirtland  who  said 
that  the  cash  capital  paid  in  was  only  about  $5000,  and  that  they 
succeeded  in  floating  from  $50,000  to  $100,000.  Ann  Eliza,  Brig- 
ham's  "wife  No.  19,"  says  that  her  father  invested  everything  he 
had  but  his  house  and  shop  in  the  bank,  and  lost  it  all. 

Cyrus  Smalling,  one  of  the  Seventy  at  Kirtland,  wrote  an 
account  of  Kirtland  banking  operations  under  date  of  March  10, 
1 841,  in  which  he  said  that  Smith  and  his  associates  collected 
about  $6000  in  specie,  and  that  when  people  in  the  neighborhood 
went  to  the  bank  to  inquire  about  its  specie  reserve,  "  Smith  had 
some  one  or  two  hundred  boxes  made,  and  gathered  all  the  lead 
and  shot  the  village  had,  or  that  part  of  it  that  he  controlled,  and 
filled  the  boxes  with  lead,  shot,  etc.,  and  marked  them  $1000  each. 
Then,  when  they  went  to  examine  the  vault,  he  had  one  box  on  a 
table  partly  filled  for  them  to  see ;  and  when  they  proceeded  to 
the  vault,  Smith  told  them  that  the  church  had  $200,000  in 
specie  ;  and  he  opened  one  box  and  they  saw  that  it  was  silver ; 
and  they  were  seemingly  satisfied,  and  went  away  for  a  few  days 
until  the  elders  were  packed  off  in  every  direction  to  pass  their 
paper  money."3 

Smith  believed  in  specie  payments  to  his  bank,  whatever  might 
be  his  intentions  as  regards  the  redemption  of  his  notes,  for,  in 
the  Messenger  and  Advocate  (pp.  441-443),  following  the  by-laws 
of  the  Anti-banking  Company,  was  printed  a  statement  signed  by 
him,  saying :  — 

"We  want  the  brethren  from  abroad  to  call  on  us  and  take  stock  in  the 
Safety  Society,  and  we  would  remind  them  of  the  sayings  of  the  Prophet  Isaiah 
contained  in  the  60th  chapter,  and  more  particularly  in  the  9th  and  17th  verses 
which  are  as  follows  :  — 

1  "  Mormonism  Portrayed,"  p.  31. 

2  "Abominations  of  Mormonism  Exposed"  (1852),  pp.  19,  20. 
s  "Mormons;  or  Knavery  Exposed"  ^1841). 


150  THE    STORY    OF   THE    MORMONS 

"  '  Surely  the  isles  shall  wait  for  me,  and  the  ships  of  Tarshish  first,  to  bring 
thy  sons  from  far,  their  silver  and  their  gold  with  them,  unto  the  name  of  the 
Lord  thy  God.' 

" '  For  brass  I  will  bring  gold,  and  for  iron  I  will  bring  silver/  etc." 

The  Messenger  and  Advocate  (edited  by  W.  A.  Cowdery),  of 
July,  1837,  contained  a  long  article  on  the  bank  and  its  troubles, 
pointing  out,  first,  that  the  bank  was  opened  without  a  charter, 
being  "considered  a  kind  of  joint  stock  association,"  and  that 
"  the  private  property  of  the  stockholders  was  holden  in  propor- 
tion to  the  amount  of  their  subscriptions  for  the  redemption  of 
the  paper,"  and  also  that  its  notes  were  absolutely  void  under  the 
state  law.     The  editor  goes  on  to  say  :  — 

"Previously  to  the  commencement  of  discounting  by  the  bank,  large  debts 
had  been  contracted  for  merchandise  in  New  York  and  other  cities,  and  large 
contracts  entered  into  for  real  estate  in  this  and  adjoining  towns ;  some  of  them 
had  fallen  due  and  must  be  met,  or  incur  forfeitures  of  large  sums.  These 
causes,  we  are  bound  to  believe,  operated  to  induce  the  officers  of  the  bank  to 
let  out  larger  sums  than  their  better  judgments  dictated,  which  almost  invariably 
fell  into  or  passed  through  the  hands  of  those  who  sought  our  ruin.  .  .  .  Hun- 
dreds who  were  enemies  either  came  or  sent  their  agents  and  demanded  specie, 
till  the  officers  thought  best  to  refuse  payment." 

This  subtle  explanation  of  the  suspension  of  specie  payments 
is  followed  with  a  discussion  of  monopolies,  etc.,  leading  up  to  a 
statement  of  the  obligations  of  the  Mormons  in  regard  to  the  dis- 
credited bank-notes,  most  of  which  were  in  circulation  elsewhere. 
To  the  question,  "  Shall  we  unite  as  one  man,  say  it  is  good,  and 
make  it  good  by  taking  it  on  a  par  with  gold  ? "  he  replies,  "  No," 
explaining  that,  owing  to  the  fewness  of  the  church  members  as 
compared  with  the  world  at  large,  "  it  must  be  confined  in  its 
circulation  and  par  value  to  the  limits  of  our  own  society."  To 
the  question,  "  Shall  we  then  take  it  at  its  marked  price  for  our 
property,"  he  again  replies,  "  No,"  explaining  that  their  enemies 
had  received  the  paper  at  a  discount,  and  that,  to  receive  it  at 
par  from  them,  would  "  give  them  voluntarily  and  with  one  eye 
open  just  that  advantage  over  us  to  oppress,  degrade  and  depress 
us."  This  combined  financial  and  spiritual  adviser  closes  his 
article  by  urging  the  brethren  to  set  apart  a  portion  of  their  time 
to  the  service  of  God,  and  a  portion  to  "  the  study  of  the  science 
of  our  government  and  the  news  of  the  day." 


SMITH'S    OHIO    BUSINESS    ENTERPRISES  151 

A  card  which  appeared  in  the  Messenger  and  Advocate  of 
August,  1837,  signed  by  Smith,  warned  "the  brethren  and  friends 
of  the  church  to  beware  of  speculators,  renegades,  and  gamblers 
who  are  duping  the  unwary  and  unsuspecting  by  palming  upon 
them  those  bills,  which  are  of  no  worth  here." 

The  actual  test  of  the  bank's  soundness  had  come  when  a 
request  was  made  for  the  redemption  of  the  notes.  The  notes 
seem  to  have  been  accepted  freely  in  Pittsburg,  Pennsylvania, 
where  it  was  taken  for  granted  that  a  cashier  and  president  who 
professed  to  be  prophets  of  the  Lord  would  not  give  countenance 
to  bank  paper  of  doubtful  value.1  When  stories  about  the  con- 
cern reached  the  Pittsburg  banks,  they  sent  an  agent  to  Kirtland 
with  a  package  of  the  notes  for  redemption.  Rigdon  loudly 
asserted  the  stability  of  the  institution ;  but  when  a  request 
for  coin  was  repeated,  it  was  promptly  refused  by  him  on  the 
ground  that  the  bills  were  a  circulating  medium  "  for  the  accom- 
modation of  the  public,"  and  that  to  call  any  of  them  in  would 
defeat  their  object.2 

Other  creditors  of  the  Mormons  were  now  becoming  active  in 
their  demands.  For  failing  to  meet  a  note  given  to  the  bank  at 
Painesville,  Smith,  Rigdon,  and  N.  K.  Whitney  were  put  under 
$8000  bonds.  Smith,  Rigdon,  and  Cowdery  were  called  into 
court  as  indorsers  of  paper  for  one  of  the  Mormon  firms,  and 
judgment  was  given  against  them.  To  satisfy  a  firm  of  New 
York  merchants  the  heads  of  the  church  gave  a  note  for  $4500 
secured  by  a  mortgage  on  their  interest  in  the  new  Temple  and 
its  contents.3  The  Egyptian  mummies  were  especially  excepted 
from  this  mortgage.  Mother  Smith  describes  how  these  relics 
were  saved  by  "various  stratagems"  under  an  execution  of  $50 
issued  against  the  prophet. 

The  scheme  of  calling  the  bank  corporation  an  "anti-banking"  so- 
ciety did  not  save  the  officers  from  prosecution  under  the  state  law. 
Informers  against  violators  of  the  banking  law  received  in  Ohio  a 
share  of  the  fine  imposed,  and  this  led  to  the  filing  of  an  informa- 
tion against  Rigdon  and  Smith  in  March,  1837,  by  one  S.  D. 
Rounds,  in  the  Geauga  County  Court,  charging  them  with  violating 
the  law,  and  demanding  a  penalty  of  $1000.     They  were  at  once 

1  "  Rocky  Mountain  Saints,"  p.  71. 

2  "Early  Days  of  Mormonism,"  p.  163.  3  Ibid.,  pp.  159-160. 


152  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

arrested  and  held  in  bail,  and  were  convicted  the  following 
October.  They  appealed  on  the  ground  that  the  institution  was 
an  association  and  not  a  bank ;  but  this  plea  was  never  ruled 
upon  by  the  court,  as  the  bank  suspended  payments  and  closed 
its  doors  in  November,  1837,  and,  before  the  appeal  could  be 
argued,  Smith  and  Rigdon  had  fled  from  the  state  to  Missouri. 


CHAPTER   VI 

LAST   DAYS   AT   KIRTLAND 

It  is  easy  to  understand  that  a  church  whose  leaders  had  such 
views  of  financial  responsibility  as  Smith's  and  Rigdon's,  and 
whose  members  were  ready  to  apostatize  when  they  could  not 
obtain  credit  at  the  prophet's  store,  was  anything  but  a  harmoni- 
ous body.  Smith  was  not  a  man  to  maintain  his  own  dignity  or 
to  spare  the  feelings  of  his  associates.  Wilford  Woodruff,  de- 
scribing his  first  sight  of  the  prophet,  at  Kirtland,  in  1834,  said  he 
found  him  with  his  brother  Hyrum,  wearing  a  very  old  hat  and 
engaged  in  the  sport  of  shooting  at  a  mark.  Woodruff  accom- 
panied him  to  his  house,  where  Smith  at  once  brought  out  a  wolf- 
skin, and  said,  "  Brother  Woodruff,  I  want  you  to  help  me  tan 
this,"  and  the  two  took  off  their  coats  and  went  to  work  at  the 
skin.1  Smith's  contempt  for  Rigdon  was  never  concealed.  Writ- 
ing of  the  situation  at  Kirtland  in  1833,  he  spoke  of  Rigdon  as 
possessing  "  a  selfishness  and  independence  of  mind  which  too 
often  manifestly  destroys  the  confidence  of  those  who  would  lay 
down  their  lives  for  him."2  Smith  was  in  the  habit  of  announcing, 
from  his  lofty  pulpit  in  the  Temple,  "  The  truth  is  good  enough 
without  dressing  up,  but  brother  Rigdon  will  now  proceed  to  dress 
it  up."3  Some  of  the  new  converts  backed  out  as  soon  as  they 
got  a  close  view  of  the  church.  Elder  G.  A.  Smith,  a  cousin  of 
Joseph,  in  a  sermon  in  Salt  Lake  City,  in  1855,  mentioned  some 
incidents  of  this  kind.  One  family,  who  had  journeyed  a  long 
distance  to  join  the  church  in  Kirtland,  changed  their  minds 
because  Joseph's  wife  invited  them  to  have  a  cup  of  tea  "  after 
the  word  of  wisdom  was  given."  Another  family  withdrew  after 
seeing  Joseph   begin  playing  with  his  children  as    soon   as   he 

1  Journal  of Discourses,  Vol.  I,  p.  IOI. 

2  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XIV,  pp.  584-585. 
8  Lippincotfs  Magazine,  August,  1880. 

153 


^4  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

rested  from  the  work  of  translating  the  Scriptures  for  the  day. 
A  Canadian  ex-Methodist  prayed  so  long  at  family  worship  at 
Father  Johnson's  that  Joseph  told  him  flatly  "not  to  bray  so 
much  like  a  jackass."     The  prayer  thereupon  returned  to  Canada. 

But  the  discontented  were  not  confined  to  new-comers.  Jeal- 
ousy and  dissatisfaction  were  constantly  manifesting  themselves 
among  Smith's  old  standbys.  Written  charges  made  against 
Cowdery  and  David  Whitmer,  when  they  were  driven  out  of  Far 
West,  Missouri,  told  them:  "You  commenced  your  wickedness 
by  heading  a  party  to  disturb  the  worship  of  the  Saints  in  the  first 
day  of  the  week,  and  made  the  house  of  the  Lord  in  Kirtland  to 
be  a  scene  of  abuse  and  slander,  to  destroy  the  reputation  of  those 
whom  the  church  had  appointed  to  be  their  teachers,  and  for  no 
other  cause  only  that  you  were  not  the  persons."  In  more  exact 
terms,  their  offence  was  opposition  to  the  course  pursued  by 
Smith.  During  the  winter  and  spring  of  1837,  these  rebels  in- 
cluded in  their  list  F.  G.  Williams,  of  the  First  Presidency,  Martin 
Harris,  D.  Whitmer,  Lyman  E.  Johnson,  P.  P.  Pratt,  and  W.  E. 
McLellin.  In  May,  1837,  a  High  Council  was  held  in  Kirtland  to 
try  these  men.  Pratt  at  once  objected  to  being  tried  by  a  body  of 
which  Smith  and  Rigdon  were  members,  as  they  had  expressed 
opinions  against  him.  Rigdon  confessed  that  he  could  not  con- 
scientiously try  the  case,  Cowdery  did  likewise,  Williams  very 
properly  withdrew,  and  "  the  Council  dispersed  in  confusion." 1 
It  was  never  reassembled,  but  the  offenders  were  not  forgotten, 
and  their  punishment  came  later. 

Mother  Smith  attributes  much  of  the  discord  among  the  mem- 
bers at  this  time  to  "  a  certain  young  woman,"  an  inmate  of  David 
Whitmer's  house,  who  began  prophesying  with  the  assistance  of 
a  black  stone.  This  seer  predicted  Smith's  fall  from  office  because 
of  his  transgressions,  and  that  David  Whitmer  or  Martin  Harris 
would  succeed  him.  Her  proselytes  became  so  numerous  that  a 
written  list  of  them  showed  that  "a  great  proportion  of  the  church 
were  decidedly  in  favor  with  the  new  party."2 

While  Smith  was  thus  fighting  leading  members  of  his  own 
church,  he  was  called  upon  to  defend  himself  against  a  serious 
charge   in    court.      A    farmer   near    Kirtland,   named   Grandison 

1  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XVI,  p.  10. 

2  "  Biographical  Sketches,"  p.  221. 


LAST   DAYS   AT   KIRTLAND  155 

Newell,  received  information  from  a  seceding  Mormon  that  Smith 
had  directed  the  latter  and  another  Mormon  named  Davis  to 
kill  Newell  because  he  was  a  particularly  open  opponent  of  the 
new  sect.  The  affidavit  of  this  man  set  forth  that  he  and  Davis 
had  twice  gone  to  Newell's  house  to  carry  out  Smith's  order,  and 
were  only  prevented  by  the  absence  of  the  intended  victim.  Smith 
was  placed  under  $500  bonds  on  this  charge,  but  on  the  formal  hear- 
ing he  was  discharged  on  the  ground  of  insufficient  evidence.1 

A  rebellious  spirit  had  manifested  itself  among  the  brethren  in 
Missouri  soon  after  Smith  returned  from  his  first  visit  to  that  state. 
W.  W.  Phelps  questioned  the  prophet's  "  monarchical  power  and 
authority,"  and  an  unpleasant  correspondence  sprung  up  between 
them.  As  Smith  did  not  succeed  by  his  own  pen  in  silencing  his 
accusers,  a  conference  of  twelve  high  priests  was  called  by  him 
in  Kirtland  in  January,  1833,  which  appointed  Orson  Hyde  and 
Smith's  brother  Hyrum  to  write  to  the  Missouri  brethren.  In  this 
letter  they  were  told  plainly  that,  unless  the  rebellious  spirit  ceased, 
the  Lord  would  seek  another  Zion.  To  Phelps  the  message  was 
sent,  "If  you  have  fat  beef  and  potatoes,  eat  them  in  singleness 
of  heart,  and  not  boast  yourself  in  these  things."  It  was,  how- 
ever, as  a  concession  to  this  spirit  of  complaint,  according  to 
Ferris,  that  Smith  announced  the  "  revelation  "  which  placed  the 
church  in  the  hands  of  a  supreme  governing  body  of  three. 

Smith  himself  furnishes  a  very  complete  picture  of  the  dis- 
rupted condition  of  the  Mormons  in  1838,  in  an  editorial  in  the 
Elders'  Journal,  dated  August,  of  that  year.  The  tone  of  the 
article,  too,  sheds  further  light  on  Smith's  character.  Referring 
to  the  course  of  "  a  set  of  creatures "  whom  the  church  had 
excluded  from  fellowship,  he  says  they  "had  recourse  to  the 
foulest  lying  to  hide  their  iniquity  .  .  .  ;  and  this  gang  of  horse 
thieves  and  drunkards  were  called  upon  immediately  to  write  their 
lives  on  paper."  Smith  then  goes  on  to  pay  his  respects  to  various 
officers  of  the  church,  all  of  whom,  it  should  be  remembered,  held 
their  positions  through  "revelation"  and  were  therefore  professedly 
chosen  directly  by  God. 

Of  a  statement  by  Warren  Parish,  one  of  the  Seventy  and  an 

1  Fanny  Brewer  of  Boston,  in  an  affidavit  published  in  1842,  declared,  "I  am  per- 
sonally acquainted  with  one  of  the  employees,  Davis  by  name,  and  he  frankly  acknowl- 
edged to  me  that  he  was  prepared  to  do  the  deed  under  the  direction  of  the  prophet, 
and  was  only  prevented  by  the  entreaties  of  his  wife." 


156  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

officer  of  the  bank,  Smith  says :  "  Granny  Parish  made  such  an 
awful  fuss  about  what  was  conceived  in  him  that,  night  after  night 
and  day  after  day,  he  poured  forth  his  agony  before  all  living,  as 
they  saw  proper  to  assemble.  For  a  rational  being  to  have  looked 
at  him  and  heard  him  groan  and  grunt,  and  saw  him  sweat  and 
struggle,  would  have  supposed  that  his  womb  was  as  much  swollen 
as  was  Rebecca's  when  the  angel  told  her  there  were  two  nations 
there."    He  also  accuses  Parish  of  immorality  and  stealing  money. 

Here  is  a  part  of  Smith's  picture  of  Dr.  W.  A.  Cowdery,  a 
presiding  high  priest:  "This  poor  pitiful  beggar  came  to  Kirtland 
a  few  years  since  with  a  large  family,  nearly  naked  and  destitute. 
It  was  really  painful  to  see  this  pious  Doctor's  (for  such  he  pro- 
fessed to  be)  rags  flying  when  he  walked  upon  the  streets.  He 
was  taken  in  by  us  in  this  pitiful  condition,  and  we  put  him  into  the 
printing-office  and  gave  him  enormous  wages,  not  because  he  could 
earn  it,  but  merely  out  of  pity.  ...  A  truly  niggardly  spirit  mani- 
fested itself  in  all  his  meanness." 

Smith's  old  friend  Martin  Harris,  now  a  high  priest,  and  Cyrus 
Smalling,  one  of  the  Seventy,  are  lumped  among  Parish's  "  lackeys," 
of  whom  Smith  says  :  "  They  are  so  far  beneath  contempt  that  a 
notice  of  them  would  be  too  great  a  sacrifice  for  a  gentleman  to 
make."  Of  Leonard  Rich,  one  of  the  seven  presidents  of  the 
seventy  elders,  Smith  says  that  he  "  was  generally  so  drunk  that 
he  had  to  support  himself  by  something  to  keep  from  falling  down." 
J.  F.  Boynton  and  Luke  Johnson,  two  of  the  Twelve,  are  called 
"  a  pair  of  young  blacklegs,"  and  Stephen  Burnett,  an  elder,  is 
styled  "  a  little  ignorant  blockhead,  whose  heart  was  so  set  on 
money  that  he  would  at  any  time  sell  his  soul  for  $50,  and  then 
think  he  had  made  an  excellent  bargain." 

Smith's  own  personal  character  was  freely  attacked,  and  the 
subject  became  so  public  that  it  received  notice  in  the  Elders'  Jour- 
nal. One  charge  was  improper  conduct  toward  an  orphan  girl  whom 
Mrs.  Smith  had  taken  into  her  family.  Smith's  autobiography  con- 
tains an  account  of  a  council  held  in  New  Portage,  Ohio,  in  1834, 
at  which  Rigdon  accused  Martin  Harris  of  telling  A.  C.  Russel  that 
"Joseph  drank  too  much  liquor  when  he  was  translating  the  Book 
of  Mormon,"  and  Harris  set  up  as  a  defence  that  "this  thing  oc- 
curred previous  to  the  translating  of  the  Book."  x 

1  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XV,  p.  12. 


LAST   DAYS   AT   KIRTLAND  157 

There  was  a  good  deal  of  talk  concerning  a  confession  "  about 
a  girl,"  which  Oliver  Cowdery  was  reported  to  have  said  that  Smith 
made  to  him.  Denials  of  this  for  Cowdery  appeared  in  the  Elders' 
Journal  of  July,  1838,  one  man's  statement  ending  thus,  "Joseph 
asked  if  he  ever  said  to  him  (Oliver)  that  he  (Joseph)  confessed  to 
any  one  that  he  was  guilty  of  the  above  crime ;  and  Oliver,  after 
some  hesitation,  answered  no." 

The  Elders'  Journal  of  August,  1838,  contains  a  retraction  by 
Parley  P.  Pratt  of  a  letter  he  had  written,  in  which  he  censured  both 
Smith  and  Rigdon,  "  using  great  severity  and  harshness  in  regard  to 
certain  business  transactions."  In  that  letter  Pratt  confessed  that 
"the  whole  scheme  of  speculation"  in  which  the  Mormon  leaders 
were  engaged  was  of  the  "  devil,"  and  he  begged  Smith  to  make 
restitution  for  having  sold  him,  for  $2000,  three  lots  of  land  that  did 
not  cost  Smith  over  $200. 

Not  only  was  the  moral  character  of  Smith  and  other  individual 
members  of  the  church  successfully  attacked  at  this  time,  but  the 
charge  was  openly  made  that  polygamy  was  practised  and  sanc- 
tioned. In  the  "  Book  of  Doctrine  and  Covenants,"  published  in 
Kirtland  in  1835,  Section  101  was  devoted  to  the  marriage  rite.  It 
contained  this  declaration :  "  Inasmuch  as  this  Church  of  Christ 
has  been  reproached  with  the  crime  of  fornication  and  polygamy, 
we  declare  that  we  believe  that  one  man  should  have  one  wife,  and 
one  woman  one  husband,  except  in  case  of  death,  when  either  is  at 
liberty  to  marry  again."  The  value  of  such  a  denial  is  seen  in  the 
ease  with  which  this  section  was  blotted  out  by  Smith's  later  "  reve- 
lation "  establishing  polygamy. 

An  admission  that  even  elders  did  practise  polygamy  at  that  time 
is  found  in  a  minute  of  a  meeting  of  the  Presidents  of  the  Seventies, 
held  on  April  29,  1837,  which  made  this  declaration:  "  First,  that 
we  will  have  no  fellowship  whatever  with  any  elder  belonging  to 
the  Quorum  of  the  Seventies,  who  is  guilty  of  polygamy."1 

Again:  The  Elders'  Journal  dated  Far  West,  Missouri,  1838, 
contained  a  list  of  answers  by  Smith  to  certain  questions  which, 
in  an  earlier  number,  he  had  said  were  daily  and  hourly  asked  by 
all  classes  of  people.     Among  these  was  the  following  :  — 

"  Q.  Do  the  Mormons  believe  in  having  more  wives  than  one  ?  A.  No, 
not  at  the  same  time."  (He  condemns  the  plan  of  marrying  within  a  few  weeks 
or  months  of  the  death  of  the  first  wife.) 

1  Messenger  and  Advocate,  p.  $H> 


158  THE    STORY   OF   THE    MORMONS 

The  statement  has  been  made  that  polygamy  first  suggested 
itself  to  Smith  in  Ohio,  while  he  was  translating  the  so-called 
"  Book  of  Abraham "  from  the  papyri  found  on  the  Egyptian 
mummies.  This  so-called  translation  required  some  study  of  the 
Old  Testament,  and  it  is  not  at  all  improbable  that  Smith's  natural 
inclination  toward  such  a  doctrine  as  polygamy  secured  a  founda- 
tion in  his  reading  of  the  Old  Testament  license  to  have  a  plural- 
ity of  wives. 

For  the  business  troubles  hanging  over  the  community,  Smith 
and  Rigdon  were  held  especially  accountable.  The  flock  had 
seen  the  funds  confided  by  them  to  the  Bishop  invested  partly  in 
land  that  was  divided  among  some  of  the  Mormon  leaders.  Smith 
and  Rigdon  were  provided  with  a  house  near  the  Temple,  and  a 
printing-office  was  established  there,  which  was  under  Smith's 
management.  Naturally,  when  the  stock  and  notes  of  the  bank 
became  valueless,  its  local  victims  held  its  organizers  responsible 
for  the  disaster.  Mother  Smith  gives  us  an  illustration  of  the 
depth  of  this  feeling.  One  Sunday  evening,  while  her  husband 
was  preaching  at  Kirtland,  when  Joseph  was  in  Cleveland  "on 
business  pertaining  to  the  bank,"  the  elder  Smith  reflected  sharply 
upon  Warren  Parish,  on  whom  the  Smiths  tried  to  place  the 
responsibility  for  the  bank  failure.  Parish,  who  was  present, 
leaped  forward  and  tried  to  drag  the  old  man  out  of  the  pulpit. 
Smith,  Sr.,  appealed  to  Oliver  Cowdery  for  help,  but  Oliver  re- 
tained his  seat.  Then  the  prophet's  brother  William  sprang  to 
his  father's  assistance,  and  carried  Parish  bodily  out  of  the  church. 
Thereupon  John  Boynton,  who  was  provided  with  a  sword  cane, 
drew  his  weapon  and  threatened  to  run  it  through  the  younger 
Smith.  "  At  this  juncture,"  says  Mrs.  Smith,  "  I  left  the  house, 
not  only  terrified  at  the  scene,  but  likewise  sick  at  heart  to  see  the 
apostasy  of  which  Joseph  had  prophesied  was  so  near  at  hand."  J 

Eliza  Snow  gives  a  slightly  different  version  of  the  same  out- 
break, describing  its  wind-up  as  follows  :  — 

"John  Boynton  and  others  drew  their  pistols  and  bowie  knives  and  rushed 
down  from  the  stand  into  the  congregation,  Boynton  saying  he  would  blow  out 
the  brains  of  the  first  man  who  dared  lay  hands  on  him.  .  .  .  Amid  screams 
and  shrieks,  the  policemen  in  ejecting  the  belligerents  knocked  down  a  stove 
pipe,  which  fell  helter-skelter  among  the  people  ;  but,  although  bowie  knives  and 

1  "Biographical  Sketches,"  p.  221. 


LAST   DAYS   AT   KIRTLAND  1 59 

pistols  were  wrested  from  their  owners  and  thrown  hither  and  thither  to  prevent 
disastrous  results,  no  one  was  hurt,  and  after  a  short  but  terrible  scene  to  be 
enacted  in  a  Temple  of  God,  order  was  restored  and  the  services  of  the  day 
proceeded  as  usual."1 

Smith  made  a  stubborn  defence  of  his  business  conduct.  He 
attributed  the  disaster  to  the  bank  to  Parish's  peculation,  and  the 
general  troubles  of  the  church  to  "the  spirit  of  speculation  in  lands 
and  property  of  all  kinds,"  as  he  puts  it  in  his  autobiography, 
wherein  he  alleges  that  "  the  evils  were  actually  brought  about  by 
the  brethren  not  giving  heed  to  my  counsel."  If  Smith  gave  any 
such  counsel,  it  is  unfortunate  for  his  reputation  that  neither  the 
church  records  nor  his  "  revelations  "  contain  any  mention  of  it. 

The  final  struggle  came  in  December,  1837,  when  Smith  and 
Rigdon  made  their  last  public  appearance  in  the  Kirtland  Temple. 
Smith  was  as  bold  and  aggressive  as  ever,  but  Rigdon,  weak  from 
illness,  had  to  be  supported  to  his  seat.  An  eye-witness  of  the 
day's  proceedings  says2  that  "the  pathos  of  Rigdon's  plea,  and 
the  power  of  his  denunciation,  swayed  the  feelings  and  shook  the 
judgments  of  his  hearers  as  never  in  the  old  days  of  peace,  and, 
when  he  had  finished  and  was  led  out,  a  perfect  silence  reigned 
in  the  Temple  until  its  door  had  closed  upon  him  forever. 
Smith  made  a  resolute  and  determined  battle ;  false  reports  had 
been  circulated,  and  those  by  whom  the  offence  had  come  must 
repent  and  acknowledge  their  sin  or  be  cut  off  from  fellowship  in 
this  world,  and  from  honor  and  power  in  that  to  come."  He  not 
only  maintained  his  right  to  speak  as  the  head  of  the  church,  but, 
after  the  accused  had  partly  presented  their  case,  and  one  of 
them  had  given  him  the  lie  openly,  he  proposed  a  vote  on  their 
excommunication  at  once  and  a  hearing  of  their  further  pleas  at 
a  later  date.  This  extraordinary  proposal  led  one  of  the  accused  to 
cry  out,  "  You  would  cut  a  man's  head  off  and  hear  him  afterward." 
Finally  it  was  voted  to  postpone  the  whole  subject  for  a  few  days. 

But  the  two  leaders  of  the  church  did  not  attend  this  adjourned 
session.  Alarmed  by  rumors  that  Grandison  Newell  had  secured 
a  warrant  for  their  arrest  on  a  charge  of  fraud  in  connection  with 
the  affairs  of  the  bank  (unfounded  rumors,  as  it  later  appeared), 
they  fled  from  Kirtland  on  horseback  on  the  evening  of  January  12, 

1  "  Biography  of  Lorenzo  Snow,"  p.  20. 

2  "  Early  Days  of  Mormonism,"  Kennedy,  p.  169. 


160  THE    STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

1838,  and  Smith  never  revisited  that  town.  In  his  description  of 
their  flight,  Smith  explained  that  they  merely  followed  the  direc- 
tion of  Jesus,  who  said,  "  When  they  persecute  you  in  one  city, 
flee  ye  to  another."  He  describes  the  weather  as  extremely  cold, 
and  says,  "  We  were  obliged  to  secrete  ourselves  sometimes  to 
elude  the  grasp  of  our  pursuers,  who  continued  their  race  more 
than  two  hundred  miles  from  Kirtland,  armed  with  pistols,  etc., 
seeking  our  lives."  There  is  no  other  authority  for  this  story  of 
an  armed  pursuit,  and  the  fact  seems  to  be  that  the  non-Mormon 
community  were  perfectly  satisfied  with  the  removal  of  the  mock 
prophet  from  their  neighborhood. 

Although  Kirtland  continued  to  remain  a  Stake  of  the  church, 
the  real  estate  scheme  of  making  it  a  big  city  vanished  with  the 
prophet.  Foreclosures  of  mortgages  now  began ;  the  church  print- 
ing-office was  first  sold  out  by  the  sheriff  and  then  destroyed  by 
fire,  and  the  so-called  reform  element  took  possession  of  the  Tem- 
ple. Rigdon  had  placed  his  property  out  of  his  own  hands,  one 
acre  of  land  in  Kirtland  being  deeded  by  him  and  his  wife  to  their 
daughter. 

The  Temple  with  about  two  acres  of  land  adjoining  was  deeded 
by  the  prophet  to  William  Marks  in  1837,  and  in  1841  was  re- 
deeded  to  Smith  as  trustee  in  trust  for  the  church.  In  1862  it  was 
sold  under  an  order  of  the  probate  court  by  Joseph  Smith's  admin- 
istrator, and  conveyed  the  same  day  to  one  Russel  Huntley,  who, 
in  1873,  conveyed  it  to  the  prophet's  grandson,  Joseph  Smith,  and 
another  representative  of  the  Reorganized  Church  (non-polyga- 
mist).  The  title  of  the  latter  organization  was  sustained  in  1880 
by  Judge  L.  S.  Sherman,  of  the  Lake  County  Court  of  Common 
Pleas,  who  held  that,  "  The  church  in  Utah  has  materially  and 
largely  departed  from  the  faith,  doctrines,  laws,  ordinances  and 
usages  of  said  original  Church  of  Jesus  Christ  of  Latter-Day 
Saints,  and  has  incorporated  into  its  system  of  faith  the  doctrines 
of  celestial  marriage  and  a  plurality  of  wives,  and  the  doctrine  of 
Adam-God  worship,  contrary  to  the  laws  and  constitution  of  said 
original  church,"  and  that  the  Reorganized  Church  was  the  true 
and  lawful  successor  to  the  original  organization.  At  the  general 
conference  of  the  Reorganized  Church,  held  at  Lamoni,  Iowa,  in 
April,  1 90 1,  the  Kirtland  district  reported  a  membership  of  423 
members. 


BOOK    III 

IN  MISSOURI 

CHAPTER   I 
THE  DIRECTIONS  TO  THE  SAINTS  ABOUT  THEIR  ZION 

The  state  of  Missouri,  to  which  the  story  of  the  Mormons  is 
now  transferred,  was,  at  the  time  of  its  admission  to  the  Union,  in 
1821,  called  "  a  promontory  of  civilization  into  an  ocean  of  sav- 
agery." Wild  Indian  tribes  occupied  the  practically  unexplored 
region  beyond  its  western  boundary,  and  its  own  western  counties 
were  thinly  settled.  Jackson  County,  which  in  1900  had  195,193 
inhabitants,  had  a  population  of  2823  by  the  census  of  1830,  and 
neighboring  counties  not  so  many.  It  was  not  until  1830  that  the 
first  cabin  of  a  white  man  was  built  in  Daviess  County.  All  this 
territory  had  been  released  from  Indian  ownership  by  treaty  only 
a  few  years  when  the  first  Mormons  arrived  there. 

The  white  settler's  house  was  a  log  hut,  generally  with  a  dirt 
floor,  a  mud-plastered  chimney,  and  a  window  without  glass,  a 
board  or  quilt  serving  to  close  it  in  time  of  storm  or  severe  cold. 
A  fireplace,  with  a  skillet  and  kettle,  supplied  the  place  of  a  well- 
equipped  stove.  Corn  was  the  principal  grain  food,  and  wild  game 
supplied  most  of  the  meat.  The  wild  animals  furnished  clothing 
as  well  as  food ;  for  the  pioneers  could  not  afford  to  pay  from  1 5 
to  25  cents  a  yard  for  calico,  and  from  25  to  75  cents  for  ging- 
ham. *  Some  persons  indulged  in  homespun  cloth  for  Sunday 
and  festal  occasions,  but  the  common  outside  garments  were 
made  of  dressed  deerskins.     Parley  P.  Pratt,  in  his  autobiography, 

1  "  When  the  merchants  sold  a  calico  or  gingham  dress  pattern  they  threw  in  their 

profit  by  giving  a  spool  of  thread  (two  hundred  yards),  hooks  and  eyes  and  lining.     In 

the  thread  business,  however,  it  was  only  a  few  years  after  that  thirty  and  fifty  yard 

spools  took  the  place  of  the  two  hundred  yards."  —  "  History  of  Daviess  County,"  p.  161. 

M  161 


162  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

speaks  of  passing  through  a  settlement  where  "  some  families 
were  entirely  dressed  in  skins,  without  any  other  clothing,  includ- 
ing ladies  young  and  old." 

The  pioneer  agriculturist  of  those  days  not  only  lacked  the 
transportation  facilities  and  improved  agricultural  appliances  which 
have  assisted  the  developers  of  the  Northwest,  but  they  did  not 
even  understand  the  nature  and  capability  of  the  soil.  The  new- 
comers in  western  Missouri  looked  on  the  rich  prairie  land  as 
worthless,  and  they  almost  invariably  directed  their  course  to  the 
timber,  where  the  soil  was  more  easily  broken  up,  and  material  for 
buildings  was  available.  The  first  attempts  to  plough  the  prairie 
sod  were  very  primitive.  David  Dailey  made  the  first  trial  in 
Jackson  County  with  what  was  called  a  "barshear  plough"  (drawn 
by  from  four  to  eight  yokes  of  oxen),  the  "shear"  of  which  was 
fastened  to  the  beam.  This  cut  the  sod  in  one  direction  pretty 
well,  but  when  he  began  to  cross-furrow,  the  sod  piled  up  in  front 
of  the  plough  and  stopped  his  progress.  Determined  to  see  what 
the  soil  would  grow,  he  cut  holes  in  the  sod  with  an  axe,  and  in 
these  dropped  his  seed.  The  first  sod  was  broken  in  Daviess 
County  in  1834,  with  a  plough  made  to  order,  "to  see  what  the 
prairies  amounted  to  in  the  way  of  raising  a  crop."  Such  was 
the  country  toward  which  the  first  Mormon  missionaries  turned 
their  faces. 

We  have  seen  that  the  first  intimation  in  the  Mormon  records 
of  a  movement  to  the  West  was  found  in  Smith's  order  to  Oliver 
Cowdery  in  1830  to  go  and  establish  the  church  among  the  La- 
manites  (Indians),  and  that  Rigdon  expected  that  the  church  would 
remain  in  Ohio,  when  he  wrote  to  his  flock  from  Palmyra.  The 
four  original  missionaries  —  Cowdery,  P.  P.  Pratt,  Peter  Whitmer, 
and  Peterson  —  did  not  stop  long  in  Kirtland,  but,  taking  with 
them  Frederick  G.  Williams,  they  pushed  on  westward  to  San- 
dusky, Cincinnati,  and  St.  Louis,  preaching  to  some  Indians  on 
the  way,  until  they  reached  Independence,  Jackson  County,  Mis- 
souri, early  in  1831.  That  county  forms  a  part  of  the  western 
border  of  the  state,  and  from  1832,  until  the  railroad  took  the 
place  of  wagon  trains,  Independence  was  the  eastern  terminus  of 
the  famous  Santa  Fe  trail,  and  the  point  of  departure  for  many 
companies  destined  both  for  Oregon  and  California.  Pratt,  de- 
scribing their  journey  west  of  St.  Louis,  says:  "We  travelled  on 


DIRECTIONS   TO   THE   SAINTS   ABOUT   THEIR   ZION         163 

foot  some  three  hundred  miles,  through  vast  prairies  and  through 
trackless  wilds  of  snow ;  no  beaten  road,  houses  few  and  far  be- 
tween. We  travelled  for  whole  days,  from  morning  till  night, 
without  a  house  or  fire.  We  carried  on  our  backs  our  changes  of 
clothing,  several  books,  and  corn  bread  and  raw  pork."  1 

The  sole  idea  of  these  pioneers  seemed  to  be  to  preach  to  the 
Indians.  Arriving  at  Independence,  Whitmer  and  Peterson  went 
to  work  to  support  themselves  as  tailors,  while  Cowdery  and  Pratt 
crossed  the  border  into  the  Indian  country.  The  latter,  however, 
were  at  once  pronounced  by  the  federal  officers  there  to  be  vio- 
lators of  the  law  which  forbade  the  settlement  of  white  men 
among  the  Indians,  and  they  returned  to  Independence,  and 
preached  thereabout  during  the  winter.  Early  in  February  the 
four  decided  that  Pratt  should  return  to  Kirtland  and  make  a  report, 
and  he  did  so,  travelling  partly  on  foot,  partly  on  horseback,  and 
partly  by  steamer. 

As  early  as  March,  1830,  Smith  had  conceived  the  idea  (or 
some  one  else  for  him)  of  a  gathering  of  the  elect  "  unto  one 
place  "  to  prepare  for  the  day  of  desolation  (Sec.  29).  In  Octo- 
ber, 1830,  the  four  pioneers  were  commanded  to  start  "  into  the 
wilderness  among  the  Lamanites,"  and  on  January  2,  183 1,  while 
Rigdon  was  visiting  Smith  in  New  York  State,  another  "  revela- 
tion "  (Sec.  38)  described  the  land  of  promise  as  "  a  land  flowing 
with  milk  and  honey,  upon  which  there  shall  be  no  curse  when 
the  Lord  cometh."  This  land  they  and  their  children  were  to 
possess,  both  ''while  the  earth  shall  stand,  and  again  in  eternity." 
A  "revelation"  (Sec.  45),  dated  March  7,  1831,  at  Kirtland,  called 
on  the  faithful  to  assemble  and  visit  the  Western  countries,  where 
they  were  promised  an  inheritance,  to  be  called  "  the  New 
Jerusalem,  a  land  of  peace,  a  city  of  refuge,  a  place  of  safety  for 
the  saints  of  most  High  God."  These  things  they  were  to  "keep 
from  going  abroad  into  the  world  "  for  the  present. 

The  manner  in  which  the  elect  were  told  by  "  revelation  "  that 
they  should  possess  their  land  of  promise  has  a  most  important 
bearing  on  the  justification  of  the  opposition  which  the  Missourians 
soon  manifested  toward  their  new  neighbors.  In  one  of  these 
"revelations,"  dated  Kirtland,  February,  183 1  (Sec.  42),  Christ 
is  represented  as  saying,   "  I  will  consecrate  the  riches  of  the  Gen- 

1  "Autobiography  of  P.  P.  Pratt,"  p.  54. 


164  THE   STORY    OF   THE   MORMONS 

tiles  unto  my  people  which  are  of  the  house  of  Israel."  Another, 
in  the  following  June  (Sec.  52),  which  directed  Smith's  and 
Rigdon's  trip,  promised  the  elect,  "  If  ye  are  faithful  ye  shall  as- 
semble yourselves  together  to  rejoice  upon  the  land  in  Missouri, 
which  is  the  land  of  your  inheritance,  which  is  now  the  land  of  your 
enemies."  Another,  given  while  Smith  was  in  Missouri,  in  August, 
1 83 1  (Sec.  59),  promised  to  those  "who  have  come  up  into  this 
land  with  an  eye  single  to  My  glory,"  that  "  they  shall  inherit  the 
earth,"  and  "  shall  receive  for  their  reward  the  good  things  of  the 
earth."  On  the  same  date  the  Saints  were  told  that  they  should 
"  open  their  hearts  even  to  purchase  the  whole  region  of  country 
as  soon  as  time  will  permit,  .  .  .  lest  they  receive  none  inheritance 
save  it  be  by  the  shedding  of  blood."  It  seems  to  have  been  thought 
wise  to  add  to  this  last  statement,  after  the  return  of  the  party  to 
Ohio,  and  a  "revelation"  dated  August,  1831  (Sec.  63),  was 
given  out,  stating  that  the  land  of  Zion  could  be  obtained  only  "  by 
purchase  or  by  blood,"  and  "  as  you  are  forbidden  to  shed  blood, 
lo,  your  enemies  are  upon  you,  and  ye  shall  be  scourged  from  city 
to  city."  l 

As  to  their  obligation  to  pay  for  any  of  the  "good  things" 
purchased  of  their  enemies,  a  "revelation"  dated  September  n, 
183 1  (the  month  after  the  return  from  Missouri),  gave  this  advice  :  — 

"  Behold  it  is  said  in  my  laws,  or  forbidden,  to  get  in  debt  to  thine  enemies  ; 

"  But  behold  it  is  not  said  at  any  time,  that  the  Lord  should  not  take  when 
he  pleased,  and  pay  as  seemeth  him  good. 

"  Wherefore  as  ye  are  agents,  and  ye  are  on  the  Lord's  errand  ;  and  what- 
ever ye  do  according  to  the  will  of  the  Lord,  it  is  the  Lord's  business,  and  it  is 
the  Lord's  business  to  provide  for  his  Saints  in  these  last  days,  that  they  may 
obtain  an  inheritance  in  the  land  of  Zion."  —  "Book  of  Commandments,"  Chap. 
65. 

1  Tullidge,  in  his  "  History  of  Salt  Lake  City"  (1886),  defining  the  early  Mormon 
view  of  their  land  rights,  after  quoting  Brigham  Young's  declaration  to  the  first  arrivals 
in  Salt  Lake  Valley,  that  he  (or  the  church)  had  "  no  land  to  sell,"  but  "  every  man 
should  have  his  land  measured  out  to  him  for  city  and  family  purposes,"  says:  "Young 
could  with  absolute  propriety  give  the  above  utterances  on  the  land  question.  In  the 
early  days  of  the  church  they  applied  to  land  not  only  owned  by  the  United  States,  but 
within  the  boundaries  of  states  of  the  Union."  After  quoting  from  the  above-cited 
"revelation"  the  words  "save  they  be  by  the  shedding  of  blood,"  he  explains,  "The 
latter  clause  of  the  quotation  signifies  that  the  Mormon  prophet  foresaw  that,  unless  his 
disciples  purchased  '  this  whole  region  of  country '  of  the  unpopulated  Far  West  of  that 
period,  the  land  question  held  between  them  and  anti-Mormons  would  lead  to  the  shed- 
ding of  blood,  and  that  they  would  be  in  jeopardy  of  losing  their  '  inheritance,'  and  this 
was  realized." 


DIRECTlOxNS   TO   THE   SAINTS   ABOUT   THEIR   ZION         165 

In  the  modern  version  of  this  "  revelation  "  to  be  found  in  Sec. 
64  of  the  "  Doctrine  and  Covenants,"  the  latter  part  of  this 
declaration  is  changed  to  read,  "  And  he  hath  set  you  to  provide 
for  his  saints  in  these  last  days,"  etc. 

So  eager  were  the  Saints  to  occupy  their  land  of  Zion,  when  the 
movement  started,  that  the  word  of  "  revelation"  was  employed  to 
give  warning  against  a  hasty  rush  to  the  new  possessions,  and  to 
establish  a  certain  supervision  of  the  emigration  by  the  Bishop 
and  other  agents  of  the  church.  Notwithstanding  this,  the  rush 
soon  became  embarrassing  to  the  church  authorities  in  Missouri, 
and  a  modified  view  of  the  Lord's  promise  was  thus  stated  in  the 
Evening  and  Morning  Star  of  July,  1832,  "Although  the  Lord 
has  said  that  it  is  his  business  to  provide  for  the  Saints  in  these 
last  days,  he  is  not  bound  to  do  so  unless  we  observe  his  sayings 
and  keep  them."  Saints  in  the  East  were  warned  against  giving 
away  their  property  before  moving,  and  urged  not  to  come  to  Mis- 
souri without  some  means,  and  to  bring  with  them  cattle  and  im- 
proved breeds  of  sheep  and  hogs,  with  necessary  seeds. 


CHAPTER   II 

SMITH'S   FIRST   VISITS   TO   MISSOURI —  FOUNDING   THE   CITY 
AND  THE  TEMPLE 

On  June  7,  183 1,  a  "revelation"  was  given  out  (Sec.  52)  an- 
nouncing that  the  next  conference  would  be  held  in  the  promised 
land  in  Missouri,  and  directing  Smith  and  Rigdon  to  go  thither,  and 
naming  some  thirty  elders,  including  John  Corrill,  David  Whitmer, 
P.  P.  and  Orson  Pratt,  Martin  Harris,  and  Edward  Partridge,  who 
should  also  make  the  trip,  two  by  two,  preaching  by  the  way.  Booth 
says  :  "  Only  about  two  weeks  were  allowed  them  to  make  prepara- 
tions for  the  journey,  and  most  of  them  left  what  business  they  had 
to  be  closed  by  others.  Some  left  large  families,  with  the  crops 
upon  the  ground."  1 

Smith's  party  left  Kirtland  on  June  19,  and  arrived  at  Indepen- 
dence in  the  following  month,  journeying  on  foot  after  reaching 
St.  Louis,  a  distance  of  about  three  hundred  miles.  Smith  was  de- 
lighted with  the  new  country,  with  "  its  beautiful  rolling  prairies, 
spread  out  like  real  meadows ;  the  varied  timber  of  the  bottoms  ; 
the  plums  and  grapes  and  persimmons  and  the  flowers  ;  the  rich  soil, 
the  horses,  cattle,  and  hogs,  and  the  wild  game.  .  .  .  The  season  is 
mild  and  delightful  nearly  three  quarters  of  the  year,  and  as  the 
land  of  Zion  is  situated  at  about  equal  distances  from  the  Atlantic 
and  Pacific  Oceans,  as  well  as  from  the  Alleghany  and  Rocky 
Mountains,  it  bids  fair  to  become  one  of  the  most  blessed  places  on 
the  earth."2  The  town  of  Independence  then  consisted  of  a  brick 
courthouse,  two  or  three  stores,  and  fifteen  or  twenty  houses, 
mostly  of  logs. 

The  usual  "revelation"  came  first  (Sec.  57),  announcing  that 
"this  is  the  land  of  promise  and  the  place  for  the  City  of  Zion," 
with  Independence  as  its  centre,  and  the  site  of  the  Temple  a  lot 

1  Howe's  "  Mormonism  Unveiled." 

2  Smith's  "Autobiography,"  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XIV. 

166 


SMITH'S   FIRST   VISITS   TO   MISSOURI  167 

near  the  courthouse.  It  was  also  declared  that  the  land  should  be 
purchased  by  the  Saints,  "  and  also  every  tract  lying  westward,  even 
unto  the  line  running  directly  between  Jew  and  Gentile  "  (whatever 
that  might  mean),  "  and  also  every  tract  bordering  by  the  prairies." 
Sidney  Gilbert  was  ordered  to  "  plant  himself  "  there,  and  establish 
a  store,  "that  he  might  sell  goods  without  fraud,"  to  obtain  money 
for  the  purchase  of  land.  Edward  Partridge  was  "  to  divide  the 
Saints  their  inheritance,"  and  W.  W.  Phelps  *  and  Cowdery  were 
to  be  printers  to  the  church. 

Marvellous  stories  were  at  once  circulated  of  the  grandeur  that 
was  to  characterize  the  new  city,  of  the  wealth  that  would  be  gath- 
ered there  by  the  faithful  who  would  survive  the  speedy  destruction 
of  the  wicked,  and  of  the  coming  of  the  lost  tribes  of  Israel,  who 
had  been  located  near  the  north  pole,  where  they  had  become  very 
rich.  While  not  tracing  these  declarations  to  Smith  himself,  Booth, 
who  was  one  of  the  party,  says  that  they  were  told  by  persons  in 
daily  intercourse  with  him.  It  is  doing  the  prophet  no  injustice  to 
say  that  they  bear  his  imprint. 

The  laying  of  the  foundation  of  the  City  of  Zion  was  next  in 
order.  Rigdon  delivered  an  address  in  consecrating  the  ground,  in 
which  he  enjoined  them  to  obey  all  of  Smith's  commands.  A  small 
scrub  oak  tree  was  then  cut  down  and  trimmed,  and  twelve  men, 
representing  the  Apostles,  conveyed  it  to  a  designated  place. 
Cowdery  sought  out  the  best  stone  he  could  find  for  a  corner-stone, 
removed  a  little  earth,  and  placed  the  stone  in  the  excavation,  de- 
livering an  address.  One  end  of  the  oak  tree  was  laid  on  this  stone, 
"  and  there,"  says  Booth,  "  was  laid  down  the  first  stone  and  stick 
which  are  to  form  an  essential  part  of  the  splendid  City  of  Zion." 

The  next  day  the  site  of  the  Temple  was  consecrated,  Smith 
laying  the  corner-stone.  When  the  ceremonies  were  over,  the  spot 
was  merely  marked  by  a  sapling,  from  two  sides  of  which  the  bark 
was  stripped,  one  side  being  marked  with  a  "T  "  for  Temple,  and 
the  other  with  "  zom,"  which  Smith  stated  stood  for  "  Zomas,"  the 
original  of  Zion.  At  the  foot  of  this  sapling  lay  the  corner-stone 
—  "a  small  stone,  covered  over  with  bushes." 

Such  ceremonies  might  have  been  viewed  with  indulgence  if 

1  Phelps  came  from  Canandaigua,  New  York,  where,  Howe  says,  he  was  an  avowed 
infidel.  lie  had  been  prominent  in  politics  and  had  edited  a  party  newspaper.  Disap- 
pointed in  his  political  ambition,  he  threw  in  his  lot  with  the  new  church. 


168  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

conducted  in  some  suburb  of  Kirtland.  But  when  men  had  trav- 
elled hundreds  of  miles  at  Smith's  command,  suffering  personal 
privations  as  well  as  submitting  to  pecuniary  sacrifices,  it  was  a 
severe  test  of  their  faith  to  have  two  small  trees  and  two  round 
stones  in  the  wilderness  offered  to  them  as  the  only  tangible  indi- 
cations of  a  land  of  plenty.  Rigdon  expressed  dissatisfaction  with 
the  outcome,  as  we  have  seen  ;  Booth  left  the  church  as  soon  as 
he  got  back  to  Ohio  ;  members  of  the  party  called  Cowdery  and 
Smith  imperious,  and  the  prophet  and  Rigdon  incurred  the  charge 
of  "  excessive  cowardice  "  on  the  way. 

Smith  made  a  second  trip  to  Independence,  leaving  Ohio  on 
April  2,  1832,  and  arriving  there  on  his  return  the  following  June. 
His  stay  in  Missouri  this  time  was  marked  by  nothing  more  impor- 
tant than  his  acknowledgment  as  President  of  the  high  priesthood 
by  a  council  of  the  church  there,  and  a  "  revelation  "  which  declared 
that  Zion's  "  borders  must  be  enlarged,  her  Stakes  must  be  strength- 
ened." 


CHAPTER   III 

THE   EXPULSION   FROM   JACKSON   COUNTY  — THE  ARMY   OF 

ZION 

The  efforts  of  the  church  leaders  to  check  too  precipitate  an 
emigration  to  the  new  Zion  were  not  entirely  successful,  and, 
according  to  the  Evening  and  Morning  Star  of  July,  1833,  the 
Mormons  with  their  families  then  numbered  more  than  twelve 
hundred,  or  about  one-third  of  the  total  population  of  the  county. 
The  elders  had  been  pushing  their  proselyting  work  throughout 
the  States  and  in  Canada,  and  the  idea  of  a  land  of  plenty  appealed 
powerfully  to  the  new  believers,  and  especially  to  those  of  little 
means.  The  branch  of  the  church  established  at  Colesville,  New 
York,  numbering  about  sixty  members,  emigrated  in  a  body  and 
settled  twelve  miles  from  Independence.  Other  settlements  were 
made  in  the  rural  districts,  and  the  non-Mormons  began  to  be 
seriously  exercised  over  the  situation.  The  Saints  boasted  openly 
of  their  future  possession  of  the  land,  without  making  clear  their 
idea  of  the  means  by  which  they  would  obtain  title  to  it.  An 
open  defiance  in  the  name  of  the  church  appeared  in  an  article 
in  the  Evening  and  Morning  Star  for  July,  1833,  which  contained 
this  declaration :  — 

"  No  matter  what  our  ideas  or  notions  may  be  on  the  subject ;  no  matter 
what  foolish  report  the  wicked  may  circulate  to  gratify  an  evil  disposition ;  the 
Lord  will  continue  to  gather  the  righteous  and  destroy  the  wicked,  till  the  sound 
goes  forth,  it  is  finished." 

With  even  greater  fatuity  came  the  determination  to  publish 
the  prophet's  "  revelations "  in  the  form  of  the  "  Book  of  Com- 
mandments." Of  the  effect  of  this  publication  David  Whitmer 
says,  "  The  main  reason  why  the  printing-press  [at  Independence] 
was  destroyed,  was  because  they  published  the  '  Book  of  Com- 
mandments.' It  fell  into  the  hands  of  the  world,  and  the  people 
of  Jackson  County  saw  from  the  revelations  that  they  were  con- 

169 


170  THE    STORY  OF   THE   MORMONS 

sidered  intruders  upon  the  Land  of  Zion,  as  enemies  of  the  church, 
and  that  they  should  be  cut  off  out  of  the  Land  of  Zion  and  sent 
away."  * 

Corrill  says  of  the  causes  of  friction  between  the  Mormons 
and  their  neighbors  : 2  — 

"  The  church  got  crazy  to  go  up  to  Zion,  as  it  was  then  called.  The  rich 
were  afraid  to  send  up  their  money  to  purchase  lands,  and  the  poor  crowded  up 
in  numbers,  without  having  any  places  provided,  contrary  to  the  advice  of  the 
Bishop  and  others,  until  the  old  citizens  began  to  be  highly  displeased.  They 
saw  their  country  filling  up  with  emigrants,  principally  poor.  They  disliked  their 
religion,  and  saw  also  that,  if  let  alone,  they  would  in  a  short  time  become  a 
majority,  and  of  course  rule  the  county.  The  church  kept  increasing,  and  the 
old  citizens  became  more  and  more  dissatisfied,  and  from  time  to  time  offered  to 
sell  their  farms  and  possessions,  but  the  Mormons,  though  desirous,  were  too 
poor  to  purchase  them."  3 

The  active  manifestation  of  hostility  toward  the  new-comers 
by  the  residents  of  Jackson  County  first  took  shape  in  the  spring 
of  1832,  in  the  stoning  of  Mormon  houses  at  night  and  the  break- 
ing of  windows.  Soon  afterward  a  county  meeting  was  called  to 
take  measures  to  secure  the  removal  of  the  Mormons  from  that 
county,  but  nothing  definite  was  done.  The  burning  of  haystacks, 
shooting  into  houses,  etc.,  continued  until  July,  1833,  when  the 
Mormon  opponents  circulated  a  statement  of  their  complaints, 
closing  with  a  call  for  a  meeting  in  the  courthouse  at  Indepen- 
dence, on  Saturday,  July  20.  The  text  of  this  manifesto,  which  is 
important  as  showing  the  spirit  as  well  as  the  precise  grounds  of 
the  opposition,  is  as  follows  :  — 

"  We,  the  undersigned,  citizens  of  Jackson  County,  believing  that  an  impor- 
tant crisis  is  at  hand,  as  regards  our  civil  society,  in  consequence  of  a  pretended 
religious  sect  of  people  that  have  settled,  and  are  still  settling,  in  our  county,  styl- 
ing themselves  Mormons,  and  intending,  as  we  do,  to  rid  our  society,  '  peaceably 
if  we  can,  forcibly  if  we  must ' ;  and  believing  as  we  do,  that  the  arm  of  the  civil 
law  does  not  afford  us  a  guarantee,  or  at  least,  a  sufficient  one,  against  the  evils 
which  are  now  inflicted  upon  us,  and  seem  to  be  increasing,  by  the  said  religious 
sect,  we  deem  it  expedient  and  of  the  highest  importance  to  form  ourselves  into 
a  company  for  the  better  and  easier  accomplishment  of  our  purpose  —  a  purpose, 

1  "  Address  to  All  Believers  in  Christ,"  p.  54. 

2  CorrilPs  "  Brief  History  of  the  Church,"  p.  19. 

3  After  the  survey  of  Jackson  County,  Congress  granted  to  the  state  of  Missouri  a 
large  tract  of  land,  the  sale  of  which  should  be  made  for  educational  purposes,  and  the 
Mormons  took  title  to  several  thousand  acres  of  this,  west  of  Independence. 


THE   EXPULSION    FROM   JACKSON   COUNTY  171 

which  we  deem  it  almost  superfluous  to  say,  is  justified  as  well  by  the  law  of 
nature,  as  by  the  law  of  self  preservation. 

"It  is  more  than  two  years  since  the  first  of  these  fanatics,  or  knaves,  (for  one 
or  the  other  they  undoubtedly  are,)  made  their  first  appearance  amongst  us,  and, 
pretending  as  they  did,  and  now  do,  to  hold  personal  communication  and  con- 
verse face  to  face  with  the  Most  High  God;  to  receive  communications  and 
revelations  direct  from  heaven  ;  to  heal  the  sick  by  laying  on  hands ;  and,  in 
short,  to  perform  all  the  wonder-working  miracles  wrought  by  the  inspired 
Apostles  and  Prophets  of  old. 

"  We  believed  them  deluded  fanatics,  or  weak  and  designing  knaves,  and 
that  they  and  their  pretensions  would  soon  pass  away ;  but  in  this  we  were 
deceived.  The  arts  of  a  few  designing  leaders  amongst  them  have  thus  far 
succeeded  in  holding  them  together  as  a  society ;  and,  since  the  arrival  of  the 
first  of  them,  they  have  been  daily  increasing  in  numbers ;  and  if  they  had  been 
respectable  citizens  in  society,  and  thus  deluded,  they  would  have  been  entitled 
to  our  pity  rather  than  our  contempt  and  hatred ;  but  from  their  appearance, 
from  their  manners,  and  from  their  conduct  since  their  coming  among  us,  we 
have  every  reason  to  fear  that,  with  but  few  exceptions,  they  were  of  the  very 
dregs  of  that  society  from  which  they  came,  lazy,  idle,  and  vicious.  This  we 
conceive  is  not  idle  assertion,  but  a  fact  susceptible  of  proof,  for  with  these  few 
exceptions  above  named,  they  brought  into  our  county  little  or  no  property  with 
them,  and  left  less  behind  them,  and  we  infer  that  those  only  yoked  themselves 
to  the  Mormon  car  who  had  nothing  earthly  or  heavenly  to  lose  by  the  change ; 
and  we  fear  that  if  some  of  the  leaders  amongst  them  had  paid  the  forfeit  due  to 
crime,  instead  of  being  chosen  ambassadors  of  the  Most  High,  they  would  have 
been  inmates  of  solitary  cells. 

"But  their  conduct  here  stamps  their  characters  in  their  true  colors.  More 
than  a  year  since,  it  was  ascertained  that  they  had  been  tampering  with  our 
slaves,  and  endeavoring  to  rouse  dissension  and  raise  seditions  amongst  them. 
Of  this  their  Mormon  leaders  were  informed,  and  they  said  they  would  deal  with 
any  of  their  members  who  should  again  in  like  case  offend.  But  how  specious 
are  appearances.  In  a  late  number  of  the  Star,  published  in  Independence  by 
the  leaders  of  the  sect,  there  is  an  article  inviting  free  negroes  and  mulattoes 
from  other  states  to  become  Mormons,  and  remove  and  settle  among  us.  This 
exhibits  them  in  still  more  odious  colors.  It  manifests  a  desire  on  the  part  of 
their  society  to  inflict  on  our  society  an  injury,  that  they  knew  would  be  to  us 
entirely  insupportable,  and  one  of  the  surest  means  of  driving  us  from  the  county ; 
for  it  would  require  none  of  the  supernatural  gifts  that  they  pretend  to,  to  see 
that  the  introduction  of  such  a  caste  amongst  us  would  corrupt  our  blacks,  and 
instigate  them  to  bloodshed. 

"  They  openly  blaspheme  the  Most  High  God,  and  cast  contempt  on  His 
holy  religion,  by  pretending  to  receive  revelations  direct  from  heaven,  by  pre- 
tending to  speak  unknown  tongues  by  direct  inspirations,  and  by  divers  pretences 
derogatory  of  God  and  religion,  and  to  the  utter  subversion  of  human  reason. 

'•  They  declare  openly  that  their  God  hath  given  them  this  county  of  land, 
and  that  sooner  or  later  they  must  and  will  have  the  possession  of  our  lands  for 


172  THE    STORY    OF   THE    MORMONS 

an  inheritance;  and,  in  fine,  they  have  conducted  themselves  on  many  other 
occasions  in  such  a  manner  that  we  believe  it  a  duty  we  owe  to  ourselves,  our 
wives,  and  children,  to  the  cause  of  public  morals,  to  remove  them  from  among 
us,  as  we  are  not  prepared  to  give  up  our  pleasant  places  and  goodly  possessions 
to  them,  or  to  receive  into  the  bosom  of  our  families,  as  fit  companions  for  our 
wives  and  daughters,  the  degraded  and  corrupted  free  negroes  and  mulattoes  that 
are  now  invited  to  settle  among  us. 

"  Under  such  a  state  of  things,  even  our  beautiful  county  would  cease  to  be  a 
desirable  residence,  and  our  situation  intolerable!  We,  therefore,  agree  that,  if 
after  timely  warning,  and  receiving  an  adequate  compensation  for  what  little 
property  they  cannot  take  with  them,  they  refuse  to  leave  us  in  peace,  as  they 
found  us  —  we  agree  to  use  such  means  as  may  be  sufficient  to  remove  them,  and 
to  that  end  we  each  pledge  to  each  other  our  bodily  powers,  our  lives,  fortunes, 
and  sacred  honors. 

"  We  will  meet  at  the  court-house,  at  the  Town  of  Independence,  on  Saturday 
next,  the  20th  inst.,  to  consult  ulterior  movements."1 

Some  hundreds  of  names  were  signed  to  this  call,  and  the 
meeting  of  July  20  was  attended  by  nearly  five  hundred  persons. 
There  is  no  doubt  that  it  was  a  representative  county  gathering. 
P.  P.  Pratt  says  that  the  anti-Mormon  organization,  which  he  calls 
"  outlaws,"  was  "  composed  of  lawyers,  magistrates,  county  officers, 
civil  and  military,  religious  ministers,  and  a  great  number  of  the 
ignorant  and  uninformed  portion  of  the  population."2  The  lan- 
guage of  the  address  adopted  shows  that  skilled  pens  were  not 
wanting  in  its  preparation. 

The  first  business  of  the  meeting  was  the  appointment  of  a 
committee  to  prepare  an  address  stating  the  grievances  of  the 
people  with  somewhat  greater  fulness  than  the  manifesto  above 
quoted.  Like  the  latter,  it  conceded  at  the  start  that  there  was 
no  law  under  which  the  object  in  view  could  be  obtained.  It  char- 
acterized the  Mormons  as  but  little  above  the  negroes  as  regards 
property  or  education ;  charged  them  with  having  exerted  a  "  cor- 
rupting influence  "  on  the   slaves  ; 3  asserted  that  even  the  more 

1  Evening  and  Morning  Star,  p.  227;  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XIV,  p.  516. 

2  Pratt's  "  Autobiography,"  p.  103. 

3  The  Mormons  never  hesitated  to  change  their  position  on  the  slavery  question. 
An  elder's  address,  published  in  the  Evening  and  Morning  Star  of  July,  1833,  said  :  "  As 
to  slaves,  we  have  nothing  to  say.  In  connection  with  the  wonderful  events  of  this  age, 
much  is  doing  toward  abolishing  slavery  and  colonizing  the  blacks  in  Africa."  Three 
years  later,  in  April,  1836,  the  Messenger  and  Advocate  published  a  strong  proslavery 
article,  denying  the  right  of  the  people  of  the  North  to  interfere  with  the  institution,  and 
picturing  the  happy  condition  of  the  slaves.  Orson  Hyde,  in  the  Frontier  Guardian  in 
1850  (quoted  in  the  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XIII,  p.  63),  said:  "When  a  man  in  the 


THE   EXPULSION   FROM   JACKSON   COUNTY  173 

intelligent  boasted  daily  to  the  Gentiles  that  the  Mormons  would 
appropriate  their  lands  for  an  inheritance,  and  that  their  news- 
paper organ  taught  them  that  the  lands  were  to  be  taken  by  the 
sword.  Noting  the  rapid  increase  in  the  immigration  of  members 
of  the  new  church,  the  address,  looking  to  a  near  day  when  they 
would  be  in  a  majority  in  the  county,  asked :  "What  would  be  the 
state  of  our  lives  and  property  in  the  hands  of  jurors  and  wit- 
nesses who  do  not  blush  to  declare,  and  would  not  upon  occasion 
hesitate  to  swear,  that  they  have  wrought  miracles,  and  have  been 
the  subjects  of  miraculous  and  supernatural  cures,  have  conversed 
with  God  and  his  angels,  and  possess  and  exercise  the  gifts  of 
divination  and  of  unknown  tongues,  and  are  fired  with  the  pros- 
pect of  obtaining  inheritances  without  money  and  without  price, 
may  be  better  imagined  than  described."  That  this  apprehension 
was  not  without  grounds  will  be  seen  when  we  come  to  the  admin- 
istration of  justice  in  Nauvoo  and  in  Salt  Lake  City. 
The  address  closed  with  these  demands :  — 

"  That  no  Mormon  shall  in  future  move  and  settle  in  this  county. 

"  That  those  now  here,  who  shall  give  a  definite  pledge  of  their  intention 
within  a  reasonable  time  to  remove  out  of  the  county,  shall  be  allowed  to  remain 
unmolested  until  they  have  sufficient  time  to  sell  their  property  and  close  their 
business  without  any  material  sacrifice. 

"  That  the  editor  of  the  Star  (W.  W.  Phelps)  be  required  forthwith  to  close 
his  office  and  discontinue  the  business  of  printing  in  this  county ;  and,  as  to  all 
other  stores  and  shops  belonging  to  the  sect,  their  owners  must  in  every  case 
strictly  comply  with  the  terms  of  the  second  article  of  this  declaration ;  and, 
upon  failure,  prompt  and  efficient  measures  will  be  taken  to  close  the  same. 

"  That  the  Mormon  leaders  here  are  required  to  use  their  influence  in  pre- 
venting any  further  emigration  of  their  distant  brethren  to  this  county,  and  to 
counsel  and  advise  their  brethren  here  to  comply  with  the  above  regulations. 

"That  those  who  fail  to  comply  with  the  requisitions  be  referred  to  those 
of  their  brethren  who  have  the  gifts  of  divination  and  of  unknown  tongues,  to 
inform  them  of  the  lot  that  awaits  them."1 

Southern  states  embraces  our  faith  and  is  the  owner  of  slaves,  the  church  says  to  him, 
*  If  your  slaves  wish  to  remain  with  you,  and  to  go  with  you,  put  them  not  away;  but  if 
they  choose  to  leave  you,  and  are  not  satisfied  to  remain  with  you,  it  is  for  you  to  sell 
them  or  to  let  them  go  free,  as  your  own  conscience  may  direct  you.  The  church  on 
this  point  assumes  not  the  responsibility  to  direct.' "  Horace  Greeley  quoted  Brigham 
Young  as  saying  to  him  in  Salt  Lake  City,  "  We  consider  slavery  of  divine  institution 
and  not  to  be  abolished  until  the  curse  pronounced  on  Ham  shall  have  been  removed 
from  his  descendants"  ("Overland  Journey,"  p.  211). 
1  Millemiial  Star,  Vol.  XIV,  pp.  487-489. 


174  THE    STORY    OF   THE   MORMONS 

A  recess  of  two  hours  was  taken  in  which  to  permit  a  com- 
mittee of  twelve  to  call  on  Bishop  Partridge,  Phelps,  and  Gilbert, 
and  present  these  terms.  This  committee  reported  that  these  men 
"  declined  giving  any  direct  answer  to  the  requisitions  made  of 
them,  and  wished  an  unreasonable  time  for  consultation,  not  only 
with  their  brethren  here,  but  in  Ohio."  The  meeting  thereupon 
voted  unanimously  that  the  Star  printing-office  should  be  razed  to 
the  ground,  and  the  type  and  press  be  "  secured." 

A  report  of  the  action  of  this  meeting  and  its  result  was  pre- 
pared by  the  chairman  and  two  secretaries,  and  printed  over  their 
signatures  in  the  Western  Monitor  of  Fayette,  Missouri,  on  August 
2,  1833,  and  it  is  transferred  to  Smith's  autobiography.  It  agrees 
with  the  Mormon  account  set  forth  in  their  later  petition  to  Gover- 
nor Dunklin.  It  particularized,  however,  that  the  Mormon  leaders 
asked  the  committee  first  for  three  months,  and  then  for  ten  days, 
in  which  to  consider  the  demands,  and  were  told  that  they  could 
have  only  fifteen  minutes. 

What  happened  next  is  thus  set  forth  in  the  chairman's  re- 
port :  — 

"  Which  resolution  [for  the  razing  of  the  Star  office]  was  with  the  utmost  order 
and  the  least  noise  and  disturbance  possible,  forthwith  carried  into  execution,  as 
also  some  other  steps  of  a  similar  tendency ;  but  no  blood  was  spilled  nor  any  blows 
inflicted." 

Mobs  do  not  generally  act  with  the  "  utmost  order,"  and  this  one 
was  not  an  exception  to  the  rule,  as  an  explanation  of  the  "  other 
steps  "  will  make  clear.  The  first  object  of  attack  was  the  printing- 
office,  a  two-story  brick  building.  This  was  demolished,  causing  a 
loss  of  $6000,  according  to  the  Mormon  claims.  The  mob  next 
visited  the  store  kept  by  Gilbert,  but  refrained  from  attacking  it  on 
receiving  a  pledge  that  the  goods  would  be  packed  for  removal  by 
the  following  Tuesday.  They  then  called  at  the  houses  of  some  of 
the  leading  Mormons,  and  conducted  Bishop  Partridge  and  a  man 
named  Allen  to  the  public  square.  Partridge  told  his  captors  that 
the  saints  had  been  subjected  to  persecution  in  all  ages  ;  that  he  was 
willing  to  suffer  for  Christ's  sake,  but  that  he  would  not  consent  to 
leave  the  country.  Allen  refused  either  to  agree  to  depart  or  to 
deny  the  inspiration  of  the  Mormon  Bible.  Both  men  were  then 
relieved  of  their  hats,  coats,  and  vests,  daubed  with  tar,  and  decorated 


THE   EXPULSION   FROM   JACKSON   COUNTY  175 

with  feathers.     This  ended  the  proceedings  of  that  day,  and  an  ad- 
journment was  announced  until  the  following  Tuesday. 

On  Tuesday,  July  23  (the  date  of  the  laying  of  the  corner-stone 
of  the  Kirtland  Temple),  the  Missourians gathered  again  in  the  town, 
carrying  a  red  flag  and  bearing  arms.  The  Mormon  statement  to 
Governor  Dunklin  says,  "They  proceeded  to  take  some  of  the 
leading  elders  by  force,  declaring  it  to  be  their  intention  to  whip 
them  from  fifty  to  five  hundred  lashes  apiece,  to  demolish  their 
dwelling  houses,  and  let  their  negroes  loose  to  go  through  our  planta- 
tions and  lay  open  our  fields  for  the  destruction  of  our  crops."  * 
The  official  report  of  the  officers  of  the  meeting 2  says  that,  when 
the  chairman  had  taken  his  seat,  a  committee  was  appointed  to 
wait  on  the  Mormons  at  the  request  of  the  latter. 

As  a  result  of  a  conference  with  this  committee,  a  written  agree- 
ment was  entered  into,  signed  by  the  committee  and  the  Mormons 
named  in  it,  to  this  effect :  That  Oliver  Cowdery,  W.  W.  Phelps, 
W.  E.  McLellin,  Edward  Partridge,  John  Wright,  Simeon  Carter, 
Peter  and  John  Whitmer,  and  Harvey  Whitlock,  with  their  families, 
should  move  from  the  county  by  January  1  next,  and  use  their  in- 
fluence to  induce  their  fellow-Mormons  in  the  county  to  do  likewise 
—  one  half  by  January  1  and  all  by  April  1  —  and  to  prevent  fur- 
ther immigration  of  the  brethren  ;  John  Corrill  and  A.  S.  Gilbert  to 
remain  as  agents  to  wind  up  the  business  of  the  society,  Gilbert  to 
be  allowed  to  sell  out  his  goods  on  hand ;  no  Mormon  paper  to  be 
published  in  the  county ;  Partridge  and  Phelps  to  be  allowed  to  go 
and  come  after  January  1,  in  winding  up  their  business,  if  their  fam- 
ilies were  removed  by  that  time ;  the  committee  pledging  themselves 
to  use  their  influence  to  prevent  further  violence,  and  assuring  Phelps 
that  "  whenever  he  was  ready  to  move,  the  amount  of  all  his  losses 
[on  the  printing-house]  should  be  paid  to  him  by  the  citizens."  In 
view  of  this  arrangement  there  was  no  further  trouble  for  more  than 
two  months. 

The  Mormon  leaders  had,  however,  no  intention  of  carrying  out 
their  part  of  this  undertaking.  Corrill,  in  a  letter  to  Oliver  Cowdery 
written   in    December,   1833,  said  that  the  agreement  was  made, 

1  Greene,  in  his  "  Facts  Relative  to  the  Expulsion  of  the  Mormons  from  the  State 
of  Missouri "  (1839),  says  that  the  mob  seized  a  number  of  Mormons  and,  at  the  muzzle 
of  their  guns,  compelled  them  to  confess  that  the  Mormon  Bible  was  a  fraud. 

2  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XIV,  p.  500. 


176  THE    STORY    OF   THE    MORMONS 

"  supposing  that  before  the  time  arrived  the  mob  would  see  their 
error  and  stop  the  violence,  or  that  some  means  might  be  employed 
so  that  we  could  stay  in  peace."  1  Oliver  Cowdery  was  sent  at  once 
to  Kirtland  to  advise  with  the  church  officers  there.  On  his  arrival, 
early  in  August,  a  council  was  convened,  and  it  was  decided  that 
legal  measures  should  be  taken  to  establish  the  rights  of  the  Saints 
in  Missouri.  Smith  directed  that  they  should  neither  sell  their  lands 
nor  move  out  of  Jackson  County,  save  those  who  had  signed  the 
agreement.2  It  was  also  decided  to  send  Orson  Hyde  and  John 
Gould  to  Missouri  "  with  advice  to  the  Saints  in  their  unfortunate 
situation  through  the  late  outrage  of  the  mob."  3 

To  strengthen  the  courage  of  the  flock  in  Missouri,  Smith  gave 
forth  at  Kirtland,  under  date  of  August  2,  1833,  a  "revelation" 
(Sec.  97),  "  in  answer  to  our  correspondence  with  the  prophet," 
says  P.  P.  Pratt,4  in  which  the  Lord  was  represented  as  saying, 
"  Surely,  Zion  is  the  city  of  our  God,  and  surely  Zion  cannot  fail, 
neither  be  moved  out  of  her  place  ;  for  God  is  there,  and  the  hand 
of  God  is  there,  and  he  has  sworn  by  the  power  of  his  might  to  be 
her  salvation  and  her  high  tower."  The  same  "  revelation  "  directed 
that  the  Temple  should  be  built  speedily  by  means  of  tithing,  and 
threatened  Zion  with  pestilence,  plague,  sword,  vengeance,  and  de- 
vouring fire  unless  she  obeyed  the  Lord's  commands. 

The  outcome  of  all  the  deliberations  at  Kirtland  was  the  send- 
ing of  W.  W.  Phelps  and  Orson  Hyde  to  Jefferson  City  with  a  long 
petition  to  Governor  Dunklin,  setting  forth  the  charges  of  the  Mis- 
sourians  against  the  Mormons,  and  the  action  of  the  two  meetings 
at  Independence,  and  making  a  direct  appeal  to  him  for  assistance, 
asking  him  to  employ  troops  in  their  defence,  in  order  that  they 
might  sue  for  damages,  "  and,  if  advisable,  try  for  treason  against 
the  government." 

The  governor  sent  them  a  written  reply  under  date  of  October 
19,  in  which,  after  expressing  sympathy  with  them  in  their  troubles, 
he  said  :  "  I  should  think  myself  unworthy  the  confidence  with 
which  I  have  been  honored  by  my  fellow-citizens  did  I  not  promptly 
employ  all  the  means  which  the  constitution  and  laws  have  placed 
at  my  disposal  to  avert  the  calamities  with  which  you  are  threatened. 

1  Evening  and  Morning  Star,  January,  1834 

2  Elder  Williams's  Letter,  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XIV,  p.  519. 

3  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XIV,  p.  504.  4  Pratt's  "Autobiography,"  p.  100. 


THE   EXPULSION   FROM   JACKSON   COUNTY  177 

...  No  citizen,  or  number  of  citizens,  have  a  right  to  take  the  re- 
dress of  their  grievances,  whether  real  or  imaginary,  into  their  own 
hands.  Such  conduct  strikes  at  the  very  existence  of  society." 
He  advised  the  Mormons  to  invoke  the  laws  in  their  behalf  ;  to  se- 
cure a  warrant  from  a  justice  of  the  peace,  and  so  test  the  question 
"whether  the  law  can  be  peaceably  executed  or  not";  if  not,  it 
would  be  his  duty  to  take  steps  to  execute  it. 

The  Mormons  and  their  neighbors  were  thus  brought  face  to 
face  in  a  manner  which  admitted  of  no  compromise.  The  situa- 
tion naturally  seemed  rather  a  simple  one  to  the  governor,  who 
was  probably  ignorant  of  the  intentions  and  ambition  of  the  Mor- 
mons. If  he  had  understood  the  nature  and  weight  of  the  objec- 
tions to  them,  he  would  have  understood  also  that  he  could  protect 
them  in  their  possessions  only  by  maintaining  a  military  force. 

His  letter  gave  the  Mormons  of  Jackson  County  new  courage. 
They  had  been  maintaining  a  waiting  attitude  since  the  meeting 
of  July  23,  but  now  they  resumed  their  occupations,  and  began  to 
erect  more  houses,  and  to  improve  their  places  as  if  for  a  perma- 
nent stay,  and  meanwhile  there  was  no  cessation  of  the  immigra- 
tion of  new  members  from  the  East.  Their  leaders  consulted  four 
lawyers  in  Clay  County,  and  arranged  with  them  to  look  after  their 
legal  interests. 

This  evident  repudiation  by  the  Mormons  of  their  part  of  their 
agreement  with  the  committee  incensed  the  Jackson  County  people, 
and  hostilities  were  resumed.  On  the  night  of  October  31,  a  mob 
attacked  a  Mormon  settlement  called  Big  Blue,  some  ten  miles  west 
of  Independence,  damaged  a  number  of  houses,  whipped  some 
of  the  men,  and  frightened  women  and  children  so  badly  that 
they  fled  to  the  outlying  country  for  hiding-places.  On  the  night 
of  November  1,  Mormon  houses  were  stoned  in  Independence, 
and  the  church  store  was  broken  into  and  its  goods  scattered 
in  the  street.  The  Mormons  thereupon  showed  the  governor's 
letter  to  a  justice  of  the  peace,  and  asked  him  for  a  warrant, 
but  their  accounts  say  that  he  refused  one.  When  they  took 
before  the  same  officer  a  man  whom  they  caught  in  the  act  of 
destroying  their  property,  the  justice  not  only  refused  to  hold  him, 
but  granted  a  warrant  in  his  behalf  against  Gilbert,  Corrill,  and 
two  other  Mormons  for  false  imprisonment,  and  they  were  locked 
up.1     Thrown  on  their  own  resources  for  defence,  the   Mormons 

1  Corrill's  letter,  Evening  and  Morning  Star,  January,  1834. 


I78  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

now  armed  themselves  as  well  as  they  could,  and  established  a 
night  picket  service  throughout  their  part  of  the  county.  On 
Saturday  night,  November  2,  a  second  attack  was  made  by  the 
mob  on  Big  Blue  and,  the  Mormons  resisting,  the  first  "  battle  "  of 
this  campaign  took  place.  A  sick  woman  received  a  pistol-shot 
wound  in  the  head,  and  one  of  the  Mormons  a  wound  in  the  thigh. 
Parley  P.  Pratt  and  others  were  then  sent  to  Lexington  to  procure 
a  warrant  from  Circuit  Judge  Ryland,  but,  according  to  Pratt,  he 
refused  to  grant  one,  and  "  advised  us  to  fight  and  kill  the  outlaws 
whenever  they  came  upon  us."  x 

On  Monday  evening,  November  4,  a  body  of  Missourians  who 
had  been  visiting  some  of  the  Mormon  settlements  came  in  contact 
with  a  company  of  Mormons  who  had  assembled  for  defence,  and 
an  exchange  of  shots  ensued,  by  which  a  number  on  both  sides 
were  wounded,  one  of  the  Mormons  dying  the  next  day. 

These  conflicts  increased  the  excitement,  and  the  Mormons, 
knowing  how  they  were  outnumbered,  now  realized  that  they  could 
not  stay  in  Jackson  County  any  longer,  and  they  arranged  to  move. 
At  first  they  decided  to  make  their  new  settlement  only  fifty  miles 
south  of  Independence,  in  Van  Buren  County,  but  to  this  the 
Jackson  County  people  would  not  consent.  They  therefore  agreed 
to  move  north  into  Clay  County,  between  which  and  Jackson 
County  the  Missouri  River,  which  there  runs  east,  formed  the 
boundary.  Most  of  them  went  to  Clay  County,  but  others  scat- 
tered throughout  the  other  near-by  counties,  whose  inhabitants 
soon  let  them  know  that  their  presence  was  not  agreeable. 

The  hasty  removal  of  these  people  so  late  in  the  season  was 
accompanied  by  great  personal  hardships  and  considerable  pecun- 
iary loss.  The  Mormons  have  stated  the  number  of  persons  driven 
out  at  fifteen  hundred,  and  the  number  of  houses  burned,  before 
and  after  their  departure,  at  from  two  hundred  to  three  hundred. 
Cattle  and  household  effects  that  could  not  be  moved  were  sold  for 
what  they  would  bring,  and  those  who  took  with  them  sufficient 
provisions  for  their  immediate  wants  considered  themselves  fortu- 
nate. One  party  of  six  men  and  about  one  hundred  and  fifty 
women  and  children,  panic-stricken  by  the  action  of  the  mob,  wan- 
dered for  several  days  over  the  prairie  without  even  sufficient  food. 
The  banks  of  the  Missouri  River  where  the  fugitives  were  ferried 

1  Pratt's  "  Autobiography,"  p.  105. 


THE   EXPULSION   FROM   JACKSON   COUNTY  179 

across  presented  a  strange  spectacle.  In  a  pouring  rain  the  big 
company  were  encamped  there  on  November  7,  some  with  tents 
and  some  without  any  cover,  their  household  goods  piled  up  around 
them.  Children  were  born  in  this  camp,  and  the  sick  had  to  put  up 
with  such  protection  as  could  be  provided.  So  determined  were  the 
Jackson  County  people  that  not  a  Mormon  should  remain  among 
them,  that  on  November  23  they  drove  out  a  little  settlement  of 
some  twenty  families  living  about  fifteen  miles  from  Independence, 
compelling  women  and  children  to  depart  on  immediate  notice. 

The  Mormons  made  further  efforts  through  legal  proceedings 
to  assert  their  rights  in  Jackson  County,  but  unsuccessfully.  The 
governor  declared  that  the  situation  did  not  warrant  him  in  call- 
ing out  the  militia,  and  referred  them  to  the  courts  for  redress  for 
civil  injuries.  In  later  years  they  appealed  more  than  once  to 
the  federal  authorities  at  Washington  for  assistance  in  reestab- 
lishing themselves  in  Jackson  County,1  but  were  informed  that 
the  matter  rested  with  the  state  of  Missouri.  Their  future  bitter- 
ness toward  the  federal  government  was  explained  on  the  ground 
of  this  refusal  to  come  to  their  aid. 

Meanwhile  Smith  had  been  preparing  to  use  the  authority  at 
his  command  to  make  good  his  predictions  about  the  permanency 
of  the  church  in  the  Missouri  Zion.  On  December  6,  1833,  he 
gave  out  a  long  "revelation"  at  Kirtland  (Sec.  101),  which  created 
a  great  sensation  among  his  followers.  Beginning  with  the  decla- 
ration that  "  I,  the  Lord,"  have  suffered  affliction  to  come  on  the 
brethren  in  Missouri  "in  consequence  of  their  transgressions, 
envyings  and  stripes,  and  lustful  and  covetous  desires,"  it  went 
on  to  promise  them  as  follows :  — 

"  Zion  shall  not  be  moved  out  of  her  place,  notwithstanding  her  children  are 
scattered.  .  .  .  And,  behold,  there  is  none  other  place  appointed  than  that  which 
I  have  appointed  ;  neither  shall  there  be  any  other  place  appointed  than  that 
which  I  have  appointed,  for  the  work  of  the  gathering  of  my  saints,  until  the  day 
cometh  when  there  is  found  no  more  room  for  them.11 

The  "  revelation  "  then  stated  the  Lord's  will  "  concerning  the 
redemption  of  Zion  "  in  the  form  of  a  long  parable  which  con- 
tained these  instructions :  — 

1  James  Hutchins,  a  resident  of  Wisconsin,  addressed  a  long  appeal  "  for  justice  "  to 
President  Grant  in  1876,  asking  him  to  reinstate  the  Mormons  in  the  homes  from  which 
they  had  been  driven. 


180  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

"  And  go  ye  straightway  into  the  land  of  my  vineyard,  and  redeem  my  vine- 
yard, for  it  is  mine,  I  have  bought  it  with  money. 

"  Therefore  get  ye  straightway  unto  my  land ;  break  down  the  walls  of  mine 
enemies ;  throw  down  their  tower  and  scatter  their  watchmen ; 

"And  inasmuch  as  they  gather  together  against  you,  avenge  me  of  mine  ene- 
mies, that  by  and  by  I  may  come  with  the  residue  of  mine  house  and  possess  the 
land." 

This  "  revelation  "  was  industriously  circulated  in  printed  form 
among  the  churches  of  Ohio  and  the  East,  and  so  great  was  the 
demand  for  copies  that  they  sold  for  one  dollar  each.  The  only 
construction  to  be  placed  upon  it  was  that  Smith  proposed  to 
make  good  his  predictions  by  means  of  an  armed  force  led  against 
the  people  of  Missouri.     This  view  soon  had  confirmation. 

The  arrival  of  P.  P.  Pratt  and  Lyman  Wight  in  Kirtland  in 
February,  1834,  was  followed  by  a  "  revelation  "  (Sec.  103)  promis- 
ing an  outpouring  of  God's  wrath  on  those  who  had  expelled  the 
brethren  from  their  Missouri  possessions,  and  declaring  that  "  the 
redemption  of  Zion  must  needs  come  by  power,"  and  that  Smith 
was  to  lead  them,  as  Moses  led  the  children  of  Israel. 

In  obedience  to  this  direction  there  was  assembled  a  military 
organization,  known  in  church  history  as  "  The  Army  of  Zion." 
Recruiters,  led  by  Smith  and  Rigdon,  visited  the  Eastern  states, 
and  by  May  1  some  two  hundred  men  had  assembled  at  Kirtland 
ready  to  march  to  Missouri  to  aid  their  brethren.1 

The  Army  of  Zion,  as  it  called  itself,  was  not  an  impressive 
one  in  appearance.  Military  experience  was  not  required  of  the 
recruits ;  but  no  one  seems  to  have  been  accepted  who  was  not  in 
possession  of  a  weapon  and  at  least  $5  in  cash.  The  weapons 
ranged  from  butcher  knives  and  rusty  swords  to  pistols,  muskets, 
and  rifles.  Smith  himself  carried  a  fine  sword,  a  brace  of  pistols 
(purchased  on  six  months'  credit),  and  a  rifle,  and  had  four  horses 
allotted  to  him.  He  had  himself  elected  treasurer  of  the  expedi- 
tion, and  to  him  was  intrusted  all  the  money  of  the  men,  to  be  dis- 
bursed as  his  judgment  dictated. 

According  to  his  own  account,  they  were  constantly  threatened 
by  enemies  during  their  march;  but  they  paid  no  attention  to  them, 
knowing  that  angels  accompanied  them  as  protectors,  "  for  we  saw 
them." 

1  There  are  three  detailed  accounts  of  this  expedition,  one  in  Smith's  autobiography, 
another  in  H.  C.  Kimball's  journal  in  Times  and  Seasons,  Vol.  6,  and  another  in  Howe's 
"  Mormonism  Unveiled,"  procured  from  one  of  the  accompanying  sharpshooters. 


THE   EXPULSION   FROM   JACKSON   COUNTY  i8r 

As  they  approached  Clay  County  a  committee  from  Ray 
County  called  on  them  to  inquire  about  their  intention,  and,  when 
a  few  miles  from  Liberty,  in  Clay  County,  General  Atchison  and 
other  Missourians  met  them  and  warned  them  not  to  defy  popular 
feeling  by  entering  that  town.  Accepting  this  advice,  they  took 
a  circuitous  route  and  camped  on  Rush  Creek,  whence  Smith 
on  June  25  sent  a  letter  to  General  Atchison's  committee  saying 
that,  in  the  interest  of  peace,  "  we  have  concluded  that  our  com- 
pany shall  be  immediately  dispersed." 

The  night  before  this  letter  was  sent,  cholera  broke  out  in  the 
camp.  Smith  at  once  attempted  to  perform  miraculous  cures  of 
the  victims,  but  he  found  actual  cholera  patients  very  different  to 
deal  with  from  old  women  with  imaginary  ailments,  or,  as  he  puts 
it,  "  I  quickly  learned  by  painful  experience  that,  when  the  great 
Jehovah  decrees  destruction  upon  any  people,  and  makes  known 
his  determination,  man  must  not  attempt  to  stay  his  hand." l 
There  were  thirteen  deaths  in  camp,  among  the  victims  being 
Sidney  Gilbert. 

Of  course,  some  explanation  was  necessary  to  reconcile  the 
prophet's  surrender  without  a  battle  with  the  "  revelation  "  which 
directed  the  army  to  march  and  promised  a  victory.  This  came  in 
the  shape  of  another  "revelation  "  (Sec.  105)  which  declared  that 
the  immediate  redemption  of  the  people  must  be  delayed  because 
of  their  disobedience  and  lack  of  union  (especially  excepting  him- 
self from  this  censure) ;  that  the  Lord  did  not  "  require  at  their 
hands  to  fight  the  battles  of  Zion  "  ;  that  a  large  enough  force 
had  not  assembled  at  the  Lord's  command,  and  that  those  who 
had  made  the  journey  were  "  brought  thus  far  for  a  trial  of  their 
faith."  The  brethren  were  directed  not  to  make  boasts  of  the 
judgment  to  come  on  the  Missourians,  but  to  keep  quiet,  and 
"gather  together,  as  much  in  one  region  as  can  be,  consistently 
with  the  feelings  of  the  people "  ;  to  purchase  all  the  lands  in 
Jackson  County  they  could,  and  then  "  I  will  hold  the  armies  of 
Israel  guiltless  in  taking  possession  of  their  own  lands,  which 
they  have  previously  purchased  with  their  monies,  and  of  throw- 
ing down  the  powers  of  mine  enemies."  But  first  the  Lord's 
army  was  to  become  very  great. 

It  seems  incredible  that  any  set  of  followers  could  retain  faith 
in  "  revelations  "  at  once  so  conflicting  and  so  nonsensical. 

l  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XV,  p.  86. 


V 


CHAPTER   IV 

FRUITLESS   NEGOTIATIONS   WITH   THE   JACKSON   COUNTY 

PEOPLE 

Meanwhile,  the  Mormons  in  Clay  County,  with  the  assent  of 
the  natives  there,  had  opened  a  factory  for  the  manufacture  of 
arms  "  to  pay  the  Jackson  mob  in  their  own  way,"  1  and  it  was 
rumored  that  both  sides  were  supplying  themselves  with  cannon, 
to  make  the  coming  contest  the  more  determined.  Governor  Dunk- 
lin, fearing  a  further  injury  to  the  good  name  of  the  state,  wrote  to 
Colonel  J.  Thornton  urging  a  compromise,  and  on  June  10  Judge 
Ryland  sent  a  communication  to  A.  S.  Gilbert,  asking  him  to  call  a 
meeting  of  Mormons  in  Liberty  for  a  discussion  of  the  situation. 

This  meeting  was  held  on  June  16,  and  a  committee  from  Jack- 
son County  presented  the  following  proposition :  "  That  the  value 
of  the  lands,  and  the  improvements  thereon,  of  the  Mormons  in 
Jackson  County,  be  ascertained  by  three  disinterested  appraisers, 
representatives  of  the  Mormons  to  be  allowed  freely  to  point  out 
the  lands  claimed  and  the  improvements  ;  that  the  people  of  Jack- 
son County  would  agree  to  pay  the  Mormons  the  valuation  fixed 
by  the  appraisers,  with  one  hundred  per  cent  added,  within  thirty 
days  of  the  award ;  or,  the  Jackson  County  citizens  would  agree  to 
sell  out  their  lands  in  that  county  to  the  Mormons  on  the  same 
terms."  The  Mormon  leaders  agreed  to  call  a  meeting  of  their 
people  to  consider  this  proposition. 

The  fifteen  Jackson  County  committeemen,  it  may  be  mentioned, 
in  crossing  the  river  on  their  way  home,  were  upset,  and  seven  of 
them  were  drowned,  including  their  chairman,  J.  Campbell,  who 
was  reported  to  have  made  threats  against  Smith.  The  latter  thus 
reports  the  accident  in  his  autobiography,  "  The  angel  of  God  saw 
fit  to  sink  the  boat  about  the  middle  of  the  river,  and  seven  out  of 

1  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XV,  p.  68. 
182 


NEGOTIATIONS   WITH   THE  JACKSON   COUNTY   PEOPLE     183 

the  twelve  that  attempted  to  cross  were  drowned,  thus  suddenly 
and  justly  went  they  to  their  own  place  by  water." 

On  June  21  the  Mormons  gave  written  notice  to  the  Jackson 
County  people  that  the  terms  proposed  were  rejected,  and  that 
they  were  framing  "  honorable  propositions  "  on  their  own  part, 
which  they  would  soon  submit,  adding  a  denial  of  a  rumor  that 
they  intended  a  hostile  invasion.  Their  objection  to  the  terms 
proposed  was  thus  stated  in  an  editorial  in  the  Evening  and  Morn- 
ing Star  of  July,  1834,  "When  it  is  understood  that  the  mob  hold 
possession  of  a  large  quantity  of  land  more  than  our  friends,  and 
that  they  only  offer  thirty  days  for  the  payment  of  the  same,  it 
will  be  seen  that  they  are  only  making  a  sham  to  cover  their  past 
unlawful  conduct."  This  explanation  ignores  entirely  the  offer  of 
the  Missourians  to  buy  out  the  Mormons  at  a  valuation  double  that 
fixed  by  the  appraisers,  and  simply  shows  that  they  intended  to 
hold  to  the  idea  that  their  promised  Zion  was  in  Jackson  County, 
and  that  they  would  not  give  it  up.1 

On  June  23  (the  date  of  Smith's  last  quoted  "revelation"),  the 
Mormons  presented  their  counter  proposition  in  writing.     It  was 

1  The  idea  of  returning  to  a  Zion  in  Jackson  County  has  never  been  abandoned  by 
the  Mormon  church.  Bishop  Partridge  took  title  to  the  Temple  lot  in  Independence  in 
his  own  name.  In  1839,  when  the  Mormons  were  expelled  from  the  state,  still  believ- 
ing that  this  was  to  be  the  site  of  the  New  Jerusalem,  he  deeded  sixty-three  acres  of  land 
in  Jackson  County,  including  this  lot,  'to"  three  small  children  of  Oliver  Cowdery.  In 
1848,  seven  years  after  Partridge's  death,  and  when  all  the  Cowdery  grantees  were  dead, 
a  man  named  Poole  got  a  deed  for  this  land  from  the  heirs  of  the  grantees,  and  subse- 
quent conveyances  were  made  under  Poole's  deed.  In  185 1  a  branch  of  the  church, 
under  a  title  Church  of  Christ,  known  as  Hendrickites,  from  Grandville  Hendrick,  its 
originator,  was  organized  in  Illinois,  with  a  basis  of  belief  which  rejects  most  of  the  inno- 
vations introduced  since  1835.  Hendrick  in  1864  was  favored  with  a  "revelation" 
which  ordered  the  removal  of  his  church  to  Jackson  County.  On  arriving  there  differ- 
ent members  quietly  bought  parts  of  the  old  Temple  lot.  In  1887  the  sole  surviving 
sister  and  heir  of  the  Cowdery  children  executed  a  quit  claim  deed  of  the  lot  to  Bishop 
Blakeslee  of  the  Reorganized  Church  in  Iowa,  and  that  church  at  once  began  legal  pro- 
ceedings to  establish  their  title.  Judge  Philips,  of  the  United  States  Circuit  Court  for  the 
Western  Division  of  Missouri,  decided  the  case  in  March,  1894,  in  favor  of  the  Reorgan- 
ized Church,  but  the  United  States  Court  of  Appeals  reversed  this  decision  on  the  ground 
that  the  respondents  had  title  through  undisputed  possession  ("  United  States  Court  of 
Appeals  Reports,"  Vol.  XVII,  p.  387).  The  Hendrickites  in  this  suit  were  actively  aided 
by  the  Utah  Mormons,  President  Woodruff  being  among  their  witnesses.  This  Church 
of  Christ  has  now  a  membership  of  less  than  two  hundred. 

Two  Mormon  elders,  describing  their  visit  to  Independence  in  1888,  said  that  they 
went  to  the  Temple  lot  and  prayed  as  follows :  "  O  Lord,  remember  thy  words,  and  let 
not  Zion  suffer  forever.  Hasten  her  redemption,  and  let  thy  name  be  glorified  in  the 
victory  of  truth  and  righteousness  over  sin  and  iniquity.  Confound  the  enemies  of  the 
people  and  let  Zion  be  free." — "  Infancy  of  the  Church,"  Salt  Lake  City,  1889. 


1 84  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

that  a  board  of  six  Mormons  and  six  Jackson  County  non-Mormons 
should  decide  on  the  value  of  lands  in  that  county  belonging  to 
"  those  men  who  cannot  consent  to  live  with  us,"  and  that  they 
should  receive  this  sum  within  a  year,  less  the  amount  of  damage 
suffered  by  the  Mormons,  the  latter  to  be  determined  by  the  same 
persons.  The  Jackson  County  people  replied  that  they  would  "  do 
nothing  like  according  to  their  last  proposition,"  and  expressed  a 
hope  that  the  Mormons  "  would  cast  an  eye  back  of  Clinton,  to  see 
if  that  is  not  a  county  calculated  for  them."  Clinton  was  the 
county  next  north  of  Clay. 

Governor  Dunklin,  in  his  annual  message  to  the  legislature 
that  year,  expressed  the  opinion  that  "  conviction  for  any  violence 
committed  against  a  Mormon  cannot  be  had  in  Jackson  County," 
and  told  the  lawmakers  it  was  for  them  to  determine  what  amend- 
ments were  necessary  "  to  guard  against  such  acts  of  violence  for 
the  future."  The  Mormons  sent  a  petition  in  their  own  behalf  to 
the  legislature,  which  was  presented  by  Corrill,  but  no  action  was 
taken. 


CHAPTER   V 
IN   CLAY,   CALDWELL,   AND   DAVIESS   COUNTIES 

The  counties  in  which  the  Mormons  settled  after  leaving  Jack- 
son County  were  thinly  populated  at  that  time,  Clay  County  having 
only  5338  inhabitants,  according  to  the  census  of  1830,  and  Cald- 
well, Carroll,  and  Daviess  counties  together  having  only  6617 
inhabitants  by  the  census  of  1840.  County  rivalry  is  always  a 
characteristic  of  our  newly  settled  states  and  territories,  and  the 
Clay  County  people  welcomed  the  Mormons  as  an  addition  to  their 
number,  notwithstanding  the  ill  favor  in  which  they  stood  with 
their  southern  neighbors.  The  new-comers  at  first  occupied  what 
vacant  cabins  they  could  find  in  the  southern  part  of  the  county, 
until  they  could  erect  houses  of  their  own,  while  the  men  obtained 
such  employment  as  was  offered,  and  many  of  the  women  sought 
places  as  domestic  servants  and  school-teachers.  The  Jackson 
County  people  were  not  pleased  with  this  friendly  spirit,  and  they 
not  only  tried  to  excite  trouble  between  the  new  neighbors,  but 
styled  the  Clay  County  residents  "Jack  Mormons,"  a  name  applied 
in  later  years  in  other  places  to  non-Mormons  who  were  supposed 
to  have  Mormon  sympathies. 

Peace  was  maintained,  however,  for  about  three  years.  But 
the  Mormons  grew  in  numbers,  and,  as  the  natives  realized  their 
growth,  they  showed  no  more  disposition  to  be  in  the  minority 
than  did  their  southern  neighbors.  The  Mormons,  too,  were  with- 
out tact,  and  they  did  not  conceal  the  intention  of  the  church  to 
possess  the  land.  Proof  of  their  responsibility  for  what  followed 
is  found  in  a  remark  of  W.  W.  Phelps,  in  a  letter  from  Clay  County 
to  Ohio  in  December,  1833,  that  "  our  people  fare  very  well,  and, 
when  they  are  discreet,  little  or  no  persecution  is  felt."  * 

The  irritation  kept  on  increasing,  and  by  the  spring  of  1836 
Clay  County  had  become  as  hostile  to  the  Mormons  as  Jackson 
County  had  ever  been.     In  June,  the  course  adopted  in  Jackson 

1  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XIV,  p.  646. 

185 


!86  the  story  of  the  mormons 

County  to  get  rid  of  the  new-comers  was  imitated,  and  a  public 
meeting  in  the  court  house  at  Liberty  adopted  resolutions 1  setting 
forth  that  civil  war  was  threatened  by  the  rapid  immigration  of 
Mormons ;  that  when  the  latter  were  received,  in  pity  and  kind- 
ness, after  their  expulsion  across  the  river,  it  was  understood  that 
they  would  leave  "  whenever  a  respectable  portion  of  the  citizens 
of  this  county  should  require  it,"  and  that  that  time  had  now  come. 
The  reasons  for  this  demand  included  Mormon  declarations  that 
the  county  was  destined  by  Heaven  to  be  theirs,  opposition  to 
slavery,  teaching  the  Indians  that  they  were  to  possess  the  land 
with  the  Saints,  and  their  religious  tenets,  which,  it  was  said, 
"always  will  excite  deep  prejudices  against  them  in  any  populous 
country  where  they  may  locate."  In  explanations  of  the  anti-Mor- 
mon feeling  in  Missouri  frequent  allusion  is  made  to  polygamous 
practices.  This  was  not  charged  in  any  of  the  formal  statements 
against  them,  and  Corrill  declares  that  they  had  done  nothing 
there  that  would  incriminate  them  under  the  law.  The  Mormons 
were  urged  to  seek  a  new  abiding-place,  the  territory  of  Wisconsin 
being  recommended  for  their  investigation.  The  resolutions  con- 
fessed that "  we  do  not  contend  that  we  have  the  least  right,  under 
the  constitution  and  laws  of  the  country,  to  expel  them  by  force  " ; 
but  gave  as  an  excuse  for  the  action  taken  the  certainty  of  an 
armed  conflict  if  the  Mormons  remained.  Newly  arrived  immi- 
grants were  advised  to  leave  immediately,  non-landowners  to  follow 
as  soon  as  they  could  gather  their  crops  and  settle  up  their  busi- 
ness, and  owners  of  forty  acres  to  remain  indefinitely,  until  they 
could  dispose  of  their  real  estate  without  loss. 

The  Mormons,  on  July  I,  adopted  resolutions  denying  the 
charges  against  them,  but  agreeing  to  leave  the  county.  The 
Missourians  then  appointed  a  committee  to  raise  money  to  assist 
the  needy  Saints  to  move.  Smith  and  his  associates  in  Ohio  had 
not  at  that  time  the  same  interest  in  a  Zion  in  Missouri  that  they 
had  three  years  earlier,  and  they  only  expressed  sorrow  over  the 
new  troubles,  and  advised  the  fugitives  to  stop  short  of  Wisconsin 
if  they  could.  An  appeal  was  again  made  by  the  Missouri  Mor- 
mons to  the  governor  of  that  state,  but  he  now  replied  that  if  they 
could  not  convince  their  neighbors  of  their  innocence,  "all  I  can 
say  to  you  is  that  in  this  republic  the  vox  populi  is  the  vox  det." 

1  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XV,  p.  763. 


IN   CLAY,    CALDWELL,   AND   DAVIESS    COUNTIES  187 

The  Mormons  selected  that  part  of  Ray  County  from  which 
Caldwell  County  was  formed  (just  northeast  of  Clay  County)  for 
their  new  abode,  and  on  their  petition  the  legislature  framed  the 
new  county  for  their  occupancy.  This  was  then  almost  unsettled 
territory,  and  the  few  inhabitants  made  no  objection  to  the  coming 
of  their  new  neighbors.  They  secured  a  good  deal  of  land,  some 
by  purchase,  and  some  by  entry  on  government  sections,  and  began 
its  improvement.  Many  of  them  were  so  poor  that  they  had  to 
seek  work  in  the  neighboring  counties  for  the  support  of  their 
families.  Some  of  their  most  intelligent  members  afterward  attrib- 
uted their  future  troubles  in  that  state  to  their  failure  to  keep 
within  their  own  county  boundaries. 

As  the  county  seat  they  founded  a  town  which  they  named  Far 
West,  and  which  soon  presented  quite  a  collection  of  houses,  both 
log  and  frame,  schools,  and  shops.  Phelps  wrote  in  the  summer 
of  1837,  "Land  cannot  be  had  around  town  now  much  less  than 
$10  per  acre."1  There  were  practically  no  inhabitants  but  Mor- 
mons within  fifteen  or  twenty  miles  of  the  town,2  and  the  Saints 
were  allowed  entire  political  freedom.  Of  the  county  officers,  two 
judges,  thirteen  magistrates,  the  county  clerk,  and  all  the  militia 
officers  were  of  their  sect.  They  had  credit  enough  to  make  nec- 
essary loans,  and,  says  Corrill,  "  friendship  began  to  be  restored 
between  them  and  their  neighbors,  the  old  prejudices  were  fast 
dying  away,  and  they  were  doing  well,  until  the  summer  of  1838." 

It  was  in  January,  1838,  that  Smith  fled  from  Kirtland.  He 
arrived  in  Far  West  in  the  following  March  ;  Rigdon  was  detained 
in  Illinois  a  short  time  by  the  illness  of  a  daughter.  Smith's  fam- 
ily went  with  him,  and  they  were  followed  by  many  devoted  adher- 
ents of  the  church,  who,  in  order  to  pay  church  debts  in  Ohio  and 
the  East,  had  given  up  their  property  in  exchange  for  orders  on 
the  Bishop  at  Far  West.     In  other  words,  they  were  penniless. 

The  business  scandals  in  Ohio  had  not  affected  the  reputation 
of  the  church  leaders  with  their  followers  in  Missouri  (where  the 
bank  bills  had  not  circulated),  and  Smith  and  Rigdon  received  a 
hearty  welcome,  their  coming  being  accepted  as  a  big  step  forward 
in  the  realization  of  their  prophesied  Zion.  It  proved,  however,  to 
be  the  cause  of  the  expulsion  of  their  followers  from  the  state. 

1  Messenger  and  Advocate,  July,  1837. 

2  Lee's  "  Mormonism  Unveiled,"  p.  53. 


CHAPTER  VI 

RADICAL  DISSENSIONS   IN  THE  CHURCH  —  ORIGIN   OF   THE 
DANITES  —  TITHING 

While  the  church,  in  a  material  sense,  might  have  been  as 
prosperous  as  Corrill  pictured,  Smith,  on  his  arrival,  found  it  in  the 
throes  of  serious  internal  discord.  The  month  before  he  reached 
Far  West,  W.  W.  Phelps  and  John  Whitmer,  of  the  Presidency 
there,  had  been  tried  before  a  general  assembly  of  the  church,1 
and  almost  unanimously  deposed  on  several  charges,  the  principal 
one  being  a  claim  on  their  part  to  $2000  of  the  church  funds  which 
they  had  bound  the  Bishop  to  pay  to  them.  Whitmer  was  also 
accused  of  persisting  in  the  use  of  tea,  coffee,  and  tobacco.  T.  B. 
Marsh,  one  of  the  Presidents  pro  tern,  selected  in  their  places,  in  a 
letter  to  the  prophet  on  this  subject,  said  :  — 

"  Had  we  not  taken  the  above  measures,  we  think  that  nothing  could  have 
prevented  a  rebellion  against  the  whole  High  Council  and  Bishop ;  so  great  was 
the  disaffection  against  the  Presidents  that  the  people  began  to  be  jealous  that 
the  whole  authorities  were  inclined  to  uphold  these  men  in  wickedness,  and  in  a 
little  time  the  church  undoubtedly  would  have  gone  every  man  his  own  way,  like 
sheep  without  a  shepherd." 

On  April  II,  Elder  Bronson  presented  nine  charges  against 
Oliver  Cowdery  to  the  High  Council,  which  promptly  found  him 
guilty  of  six  of  them,  viz.  urging  vexatious  lawsuits  against  the 
brethren,  accusing  the  prophet  of  adultery,  not  attending  meeting, 
returning  to  the  practice  of  law  "for  the  sake  of  filthy  lucre," 
"disgracing  the  church  by  being  connected  with  the  bogus  [counter- 
feiting] business,  retaining  notes  after  they  had  been  paid,"  and 
generally  "  forsaking  the  cause  of  God."  On  this  finding  he  was 
expelled  from  the  church.  Two  days  later  David  Whitmer  was 
found  guilty  of  unchristianlike  conduct  and  defaming  the  prophet, 
and  was  expelled,  and  Lyman   E.   Johnson  met  the  same  fate.2 

1  For  the  minutes  of  this  General  Assembly,  and  text  of  Marsh's  letter,  see  Elders' 
Journal,  July,  1838. 

*  For  minutes  of  these  councils,  see  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XVI,  pp.  130-134. 


H 


RADICAL   DISSENSIONS   IN   THE   CHURCH  189 

Smith  soon  announced  a  "revelation"  (Sec.    114),  directing  the 
places  of  the  expelled  to  be  filled  by  others. 

It  was  in  the  June  following  that  the  paper  drawn  up  by  Rig- 
don  and  signed  by  eighty-three  prominent  members  of  the  church 
was  presented  to  the  recalcitrants,  ordering  them  to  leave  the 
county,  and  painting  their  characters  in  the  blackest  hues.1  This 
radical  action  did  not  meet  the  approval  of  the  more  conservative 
element,  which  included  men  like  Corrill,  and  he  soon  announced 
that  he  was  no  longer  a  Mormon.  Not  long  afterward  Thomas  B. 
Marsh,  one  of  the  original  members  of  the  High  Council  of  Twelve 
in  Missouri,  and  now  President  of  the  Twelve,  and  Orson  Hyde,  one 
of  the  original  Apostles,  also  seceded,  and  both  gave  testimony 
about  the  Mormon  schemes  in  Caldwell  and  Daviess  Counties. 
Cowdery  and  Whitmer  considered  their  lives  in  such  danger  that 
they  fled  on  horseback  at  night,  leaving  their  families,  and  after 
riding  till  daylight  in  a  storm,  reached  the  house  of  a  friend,  where 
they  found  refuge  until  their  families  could  join  them. 

The  most  important  event  that  followed  the  expulsion  of  lead- 
ing members  from  the  church  by  the  High  Council  was  the  forma- 
tion of  that  organization  which  has  been  almost  ever  since  known 
as  the  Danites,  whose  dark  deeds  in  Nauvoo  were  scarcely  more 
than  hinted  at,2  but  which,  under  Brigham  Young's  authority  in 
Utah,  became  a  band  of  murderers,  ready  to  carry  out  the  most 
radical  suggestion  which  might  be  made  by  any  higher  authority 
of  the  church. 

Corrill,  an  active  member  of  the  church  in  Missouri,  writing  in 
1839  with  the  events  fresh  in  his  memory,  said3  that  the  members 
of  the  Danite  society  entered  into  solemn  covenants  to  stand  by  one 
another  when  in  difficulty,  whether  right  or  wrong,  and  to  correct 
each  other's  wrongs  among  themselves,  accepting  strictly  the  man- 
dates of  the  Presidency  as  standing  next  to  God.  He  explains 
that  "  many  were  opposed  to  this  society,  but  such  was  their  deter- 
mination and  also  their  threatenings,  that  those  opposed  dare  not 
speak  their  minds  on  the  subject.  ...  It  began  to  be  taught  that 
the  church,  instead  of  God,  or,  rather,  the  church  in  the  hands  of 

1  See  p.  81  ante.  For  the  full  text  of  Rigdon's  paper,  see  the  "Correspondence, 
Orders,  etc.,  in  Relation  to  the  Mormon  Disturbances  in  Missouri,"  published  by  order 
of  the  Missouri  legislature  (1841). 

2  Lee's  "  Mormonism  Unveiled,"  p.  158. 

3  "  Brief  History  of  the  Church,"  pp.  31,  32. 


190  THE    STORY    OF   THE   MORMONS 

God,  was  to  bring  about  these  things  (judgments  on  the  wicked), 
and  I  was  told,  but  I  cannot  vouch  for  the  truth  of  it,  that  some 
of  them  went  so  far  as  to  contrive  plans  how  they  might  scatter 
poison,  pestilence,  and  disease  among  the  inhabitants,  and  make 
them  think  it  was  judgments  sent  from  God.  I  accused  Smith 
and  Rigdon  of  it,  but  they  both  denied  it  promptly." 

Robinson,  in  his  reminiscences  in  the  Return  in  later  years, 
gave  the  same  date  of  the  organization  of  the  Danites,  and  said 
that  their  first  manifesto  was  the  one  directed  against  Cowdery, 
Whitmer,  and  others. 

We  must  look  for  the  actual  origin  of  this  organization,  how- 
ever, to  some  of  the  prophet's  instructions  while  still  at  Kirtland. 
In  his  "revelation"  of  August  6,  1833  (Sec.  98),  he  thus  defined 
the  treatment  that  the  Saints  might  bestow  upon  their  enemies  :  — 

"  I  have  delivered  thine  enemy  into  thine  hands,  and  then  if  thou  wilt  spare 
him,  thou  shalt  be  rewarded  for  thy  righteousness  ;  .  .  .  nevertheless  thine  enemy 
is  in  thine  hands,  and  if  thou  reward  him  according  to  his  works  thou  art  justi- 
fied, if  he  has  sought  thy  life,  and  thy  life  is  endangered  by  him,  thine  enemy 
is  in  thine  hands  and  thou  art  justified." 

What  such  a  license  would  mean  to  a  following  like  Smith's 
can  easily  be  understood. 

The  next  step  in  the  same  direction  was  taken  during  the  exer- 
cises which  accompanied  the  opening  of  the  Kirtland  Temple. 
Three  days  after  the  dedicatory  services,  all  the  high  officers  of 
the  church,  and  the  official  members  of  the  stake,  to  the  number 
of  about  three  hundred,  met  in  the  Temple  by  appointment  to  per- 
form the  washing  of  feet.  While  this  was  going  on  (following 
Smith's  own  account),1  "  the  brethren  began  to  prophesy  blessings 
upon  each  other's  heads,  and  cursings  upon  the  enemies  of  Christ 
who  inhabit  Jackson  County,  Missouri,  and  continued  prophesy- 
ing and  blessing  and  sealing  them,  with  hosannah  and  amen,  until 
nearly  seven  o'clock  p.m.  The  bread  and  wine  were  then  brought 
in.  While  waiting,  I  made  the  following  remarks,  '  I  want  to 
enter  into  the  following  covenant,  that  if  any  more  of  our  breth- 
ren are  slain  or  driven  from  their  lands  in  Missouri  by  the  mob, 
we  will  give  ourselves  no  rest  until  we  are  avenged  of  our  enemies 

1  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XV,  pp.  727-728. 


RADICAL   DISSENSIONS    IN    THE   CHURCH  191 

to  the  uttermost.'  This  covenant  was  sealed  unanimously,  with  a 
hosannah  and  an  amen."1 

The  original  name  chosen  for  the  Danites  was  "  Daughters  of 
Zion,"  suggested  by  the  text  Micah  iv.  13  :  "  Arise  and  thresh,  O 
daughter  of  Zion  ;  for  I  will  make  thine  horn  iron,  and  I  will  make 
thine  hoofs  brass  ;  and  thou  shalt  beat  in  pieces  many  people  ;  and 
I  will  consecrate  thy  gain  unto  the  Lord,  and  their  substance  unto 
the  Lord  of  the  whole  earth."  "  Daughters  "  of  anybody  was  soon 
decided  to  be  an  inappropriate  designation  for  such  a  band,  and 
they  were  next  called  "  Destroying  (or  Flying)  Angels,"  a  title  still 
in  use  in  Utah  days ;  then  the  "  Big  Fan,"  suggested  by  Jeremiah 
xv.  7,  or  Luke  iii.  17;  then  "Brothers  of  Gideon,"  and  finally 
"Sons  of  Dan"  (whence  the  name  Danites,)  from  Genesis  xlix. 
17:  "Dan  shall  be  a  serpent  by  the  way,  an  adder  in  the  path, 
that  biteth  the  horse's  heels,  so  that  his  rider  shall  fall  back- 
ward. "  2 

Avard  presented  the  text  of  the  constitution  to  the  court  at 
Richmond,  Missouri,  during  the  inquiry  before  Judge  King  in 
November,  1838.3  It  begins  with  a  preamble  setting  forth  the 
agreement  of  the  members  "  to  regulate  ourselves  under  such  laws 
as  in  righteousness  shall  be  deemed  necessary  for  the  preservation 
of  our  holy  religion,  and  of  our  most  sacred  rights,  and  the  rights 
of  our  wives  and  children,"  and  declaring  that,  "not  having  the 
privileges  of  others  allowed  to  us,  we  have  determined,  like  unto 
our  fathers,  to  resist  tyranny,  whether  it  be  in  kings  or  in  the 
people.  It  is  all  alike  to  us.  Our  rights  we  must  have,  and  our 
rights  we  shall  have,  in  the  name  of  Israel's  God."  The  President 
of  the  church  and  his  counsellors  were  to  hold  the  "executive 
power,"  and  also,  along  with  the  generals  and  colonels  of  the  so- 
ciety, to  hold  the  "  legislative  powers  "  ;  this  legislature  to  "  have 
power  to  make  all  laws  regulating  the  society,  and  regulating  pun- 
ishments to  be  administered  to  the  guilty  in  accordance  with  the 
offence."  Thus  was  furnished  machinery  for  carrying  out  any 
decree  of  the  officers  of  the  church  against  either  life  or  property. 

The  Danite  oath  as  it  was  administered  in  Nauvoo  was  as 
follows  :  — 

1  "The  spirit  of  that  covenant  evidently  bore  fruit  in  the  Fourth  of  July  oration  of 
1838  and  the  Mountain  Meadow  Massacre." —  The  Return,  Vol.  II,  p.  271. 

2  Hyde's  "  Mormonism  Exposed,"  pp.  104-105. 

8  Missouri  "  Correspondence,  Orders,  etc.,"  pp.  101-102. 


192 


THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 


"  In  the  name  of  Jesus  Christ,  the  Son  of  God,  I  do  solemnly  obligate  myself 
ever  to  regard  the  Prophet  and  the  First  Presidency  of  the  Church  of  Jesus  Christ 
of  Latter-Day  Saints  as  the  supreme  head  of  the  church  on  earth,  and  to  obey 
them  in  all  things,  the  same  as  the  supreme  God ;  that  I  will  stand  by  my  breth- 
ren in  danger  or  difficulty,  and  will  uphold  the  Presidency,  right  or  wrong ;  and 
that  I  will  ever  conceal,  and  never  reveal,  the  secret  purposes  of  this  society, 
called  Daughters  of  Zion.  Should  I  ever  do  the  same,  I  hold  my  life  as  the  for- 
feiture, in  a  caldron  of  boiling  oil."  l 

John  D.  Lee,  who  was  a  member  of  the  organization,  explaining 
their  secret  signs,  says,2  "The  sign  or  token  of  distress  is  made 
by  placing  the  right  hand  on  the  right  side  of  the  face,  with  the 
points  of  the  fingers  upward,  shoving  the  hand  upward  until  the 
ear  is  snug  up  between  the  thumb  and  forefinger." 

It  has  always  been  the  policy  of  the  Mormon  church  to  deny 
to  the  outside  world  that  any  such  organization  as  the  Danites 
existed,  or  at  least  that  it  received  the  countenance  of  the  authori- 
ties. Smith's  City  Council  in  Nauvoo  made  an  affidavit  that  there 
was  no  such  society  there,  and  Utah  Mormons  have  professed 
similar  ignorance.  Brigham  Young,  himself,  however,  gave  tes- 
timony to  the  contrary  in  the  days  when  he  was  supreme  in  Salt 
Lake  City.  In  one  of  his  discourses  which  will  be  found  reported 
in  the  Deseret  News  (Vol.  VII,  p.  143)  he  said  :  "  If  men  come  here 
and  do  not  behave  themselves,  they  will  not  only  find  the  Danites, 
whom  they  talk  so  much  about,  biting  the  horses'  heels,  but  the 
scoundrels  will  find  something  biting  their  heels.  In  my  plain 
remarks  I  merely  call  things  by  their  own  names."  It  need  only 
be  added  that  the  church  authority  has  been  powerful  enough  at 
any  time  in  the  history  of  the  church  to  crush  out  such  an  organi- 
zation if  it  so  desired. 

A  second  organization  formed  about  the  same  time,  at  a  fully 
attended  meeting  of  the  Mormons  of  Daviess  County,  was  called 
"The  Host  of  Israel."  It  was  presided  over  by  captains  of  tens, 
of  fifties,  and  of  hundreds,  and,  according  to  Lee,  "  God  com- 
manded Joseph  Smith  to  place  the  Host  of  Israel  in  a  situation 
for  defence  against  the  enemies  of  God  and  the  Church  of  Jesus 
Christ  of  Latter-Day  Saints." 

Another  important  feature  of  the  church  rule  that  was  estab- 

1  Bennett's  "  History  of  the  Saints,"  p.  267. 

2  Lee's  "Mormonism  Unveiled,"  p.  57. 


RADICAL    DISSENSIONS    IN    THE    CHURCH  193 

lished  at  this  time  was  the  tithing  system,  announced  in  a  "  reve- 
lation "  (Sec.  119),  which  is  dated  July  8,  1838.  This  required 
the  flock  to  put  all  their  "  surplus  property  "  into  the  hands  of  the 
Bishop  for  the  building  of  the  Temple  and  the  payment  of  the 
debts  of  the  Presidency,  and  that,  after  that,  "  those  who  have  thus 
been  tithed,  shall  pay  one-tenth  of  all  their  interest  annually ;  and 
this  shall  be  a  standing  law  unto  them  forever." 

Ebenezer  Robinson  gives  an  interesting  explanation  of  the 
origin  of  tithing.1  In  May,  1838,  the  High  Council  at  Far  West, 
after  hearing  a  statement  by  Rigdon  that  it  was  absolutely  neces- 
sary for  the  church  to  make  some  provision  for  the  support  of  the 
families  of  all  those  who  gave  their  entire  time  to  church  affairs, 
instructed  the  Bishop  to  deed  to  Smith  and  Rigdon  an  eighty-acre 
lot  belonging  to  the  church,  and  appointed  a  committee  of  three  to 
confer  with  the  Presidency  concerning  their  salary  for  that  year. 
Smith  and  Rigdon  thought  that  $1100  would  be  a  proper  sum, 
and  the  committee  reported  in  favor  of  a  salary,  but  left  the  amount 
blank.  The  council  voted  the  salaries,  but  this  action  caused  such 
a  protest  from  the  church  members  that  at  the  next  meeting  the 
resolution  was  rescinded.  Only  a  few  days  later  came  this  "reve- 
lation "  requiring  the  payment  of  tithes,  in  which  there  was  no 
mention  of  using  any  of  the  money  for  the  poor,  as  was  directed 
in  the  Ohio  "  revelation  "  about  the  consecration  of  property  to 
the  Bishop. 

This  tithing  system  has  provided  ever  since  the  principal 
revenue  of  the  church.  By  means  of  it  the  Temple  was  built  at 
Nauvoo,  and  under  it  vast  sums  have  been  contributed  in  Utah. 
By  1878  the  income  of  the  church  by  this  source  was  placed  at 
$1,000,000  a  year,2  and  during  Brigham  Young's  administration 
the  total  receipts  were  estimated  at  $13,000,000.  We  shall  see 
that  Young  made  practically  no  report  of  the  expenditure  of  this 
vast  sum  that  passed  into  his  control.  To  Horace  Greeley's  ques- 
tion, "  What  is  done  with  the  proceeds  of  this  tithing  ?  "  Young 
replied,  "  Part  of  it  is  devoted  to  building  temples  and  other  places 
of  worship,  part  to  helping  the  poor  and  needy  converts  on  their 
way  to  this  country,  and  the  largest  portion  to  the  support  of  the 
poor  among  the  Saints." 

1  The  Return,  Vol.  I,  p.  136. 

2  Salt  Lake  Tribune,  June  25,  1879. 


194  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

As  the  authority  of  the  church  over  its  members  increased,  the 
regulation  about  the  payment  of  tithes  was  made  plainer  and  more 
severe.  Parley  P.  Pratt,  in  addressing  the  General  Conference  in 
Salt  Lake  City  in  October,  1849,  said,  "  To  fulfil  the  law  of  tithing, 
a  man  should  make  out  and  lay  before  the  Bishop  a  schedule  of 
all  his  property,  and  pay  him  one-tenth  of  it.  When  he  hath 
tithed  his  principal  once,  he  has  no  occasion  to  tithe  again ;  but 
the  next  year  he  must  pay  one-tenth  of  his  increase,  and  one-tenth 
of  his  time,  of  his  cattle,  money,  goods,  and  trade ;  and,  what- 
ever use  we  put  it  to,  it  is  still  our  own,  for  the  Lord  does  not 
carry  it  away  with  him  to  heaven."  2 

The  Seventh  General  Epistle  to  the  church  (September,  1851) 
made  this  statement,  "  It  is  time  that  the  Saints  understood  that  the 
paying  of  their  tithing  is  a  prominent  portion  of  the  labor  which 
is  allotted  to  them,  by  which  they  are  to  secure  a  future  residence 
in  the  heaven  they  are  seeking  after."2  This  view  was  constantly 
presented  to  the  converts  abroad. 

At  the  General  Conference  in  Salt  Lake  City  on  September  8, 
1850,  Brigham  Young  made  clear  his  radical  view  of  tithing  —  a 
duty,  he  declared,  that  few  had  lived  up  to.  Taking  the  case  of  a 
supposed  Mr.  A,  engaged  in  various  pursuits  (to  represent  the 
community),  starting  with  a  capital  of  $100,000,  he  must  surrender 
$10,000  of  this  as  tithing.  With  his  remaining  $90,000  he  gains 
$410,000;  $41,000  of  this  gain  must  be  given  into  the  storehouse 
of  the  Lord.  Next  he  works  nine  days  with  his  team ;  the  tenth 
day's  work  is  for  the  church,  as  is  one-tenth  of  the  wheat  he 
raises,  one-tenth  of  his  sheep,  and  one-tenth  of  his  eggs.3 

Under  date  of  July  18,  came  another  "revelation"  (Sec.  120), 
declaring  that  the  tithings  "  shall  be  disposed  of  by  a  Council, 
composed  of  the  First  Presidency  of  my  church,  and  of  the  Bishop 
and  his  council,  and  by  my  High  Council."  The  first  meeting  of 
this  body  decided  "  that  the  First  Presidency  should  keep  all  their 
property  that  they  could  dispose  of  to  advantage  for  their  sup- 
port, and  the  remainder  be  put  into  the  hands  of  the  Bishop, 
according  to  the  commandments."  4  The  coolness  of  this  proceed- 
ing in  excepting  Smith  and  Rigdon  from  the  obligation  to  pay  a 
tithe  is  worthy  of  admiration. 

1  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XII,  p.  134.  s  Ibid.,  Vol.  XIII,  p.  21. 

2  Ibid.,  Vol.  XIV,  p.  18.  4  Ibid.,  Vol.  XVI,  p.  204. 


CHAPTER  VII 

BEGINNING   OF   ACTIVE  HOSTILITIES 

Smith  had  shown  his  dominating  spirit  as  soon  as  he  arrived 
at  Far  West.  In  April,  1838,  he  announced  a  "revelation"  (Sec. 
115),  commanding  the  building  of  a  house  of  worship  there,  the 
work  to  begin  on  July  4,  the  speedy  building  up  of  that  city,  and 
the  establishment  of  Stakes  in  the  regions  round  about.  This  last 
requirement  showed  once  more  Smith's  lack  of  judgment,  and  it 
became  a  source  of  irritation  to  the  non-Mormons,  as  it  was  thought 
to  foreshadow  a  design  to  control  the  neighboring  counties.  Hyde 
says  that  Smith  and  Rigdon  deliberately  planned  the  scattering 
of  the  Saints  beyond  the  borders  of  Clay  County  with  a  view  to 
political  power.1 

In  accordance  with  this  scheme,  a  "  revelation "  of  May  19 
(Sec.  116),  directed  the  founding  of  a  town  on  Grand  River  in 
Daviess  County,  twenty-five  miles  northwest  of  Far  West.  This 
settlement  was  to  be  called  "  Adam-ondi-Ahman,"  "  because  it  is  the 
place  where  Adam  shall  come  to  visit  his  people,  or  the  Ancient  of 
Days  shall  sit,  as  spoken  of  by  Daniel  the  Prophet."  The  "  revela- 
tion "  further  explains  that,  three  years  before  his  death,  Adam 
called  a  number  of  high  priests  and  all  of  his  posterity  who  were 
righteous,  into  the  valley  of  Adam-ondi-Ahman,  and  there  blessed 
them.  Lee  (who,  following  the  common  pronunciation,  writes  the 
name  "  Adam-on-Diamond  ")  expresses  the  belief,  which  Smith  in- 
stilled into  his  followers,  that  it  "was  at  the  point  where  Adam  came 
and  settled  and  blessed  his  posterity,  after  being  driven  from  the 
Garden  of  Eden.  There  Adam  and  Eve  tarried  for  several  years, 
and  engaged  in  tilling  the  soil." 2  By  order  of  the  Presidency, 
another  town  was  started  in  Carroll  County,  where  the  Saints  had 
been  living  in  peace.     Immediately  the  new  settlement  was  looked 

1  Hyde's  "  Mormonism,"  p.  203.  2  "  Mormonism  Unveiled,"  p.  91. 

195 


196  THE   STORY    OF   THE   MORMONS 

upon  as  a  possible  rival  of  Gallatin,  the  county  seat,  and  the  non- 
Mormons  made  known  their  objections. 

With  Smith  and  Rigdon  on  the  ground,  if  these  men  had  had 
any  tact,  or  any  purpose  except  to  enforce  Mormon  supremacy  in 
whatever  part  of  Missouri  they  chose  to  call  Zion,  the  troubles  now 
foreshadowed  might  easily  have  been  prevented.  Every  step  they 
took,  however,  was  in  the  nature  of  a  defiance.  The  sermons 
preached  to  the  Mormons  that  summer  taught  them  that  they 
would  be  able  to  withstand,  not  only  the  opposition  of  the  Mis- 
sourians,  but  of  the  United  States,  if  this  should  be  put  to  the 
test.1 

The  flock  in  and  around  Far  West  were  under  the  influence 
of  such  advice  when  they  met  on  July  4  to  lay  the  corner-stone 
of  the  third  Temple,  whose  building  Smith  had  revealed,  and  to 
celebrate  the  day.  There  was  a  procession,  with  a  flagpole 
raising,  and  Smith  embraced  the  occasion  to  make  public 
announcement  of  the  tithing  "  revelation  "  (although  it  bears  a 
later  date). 

The  chief  feature  of  the  day,  and  the  one  that  had  most 
influence  on  the  fortunes  of  the  church,  was  a  sermon  by  Sidney 
Rigdon,  known  ever  since  as  the  "  salt  sermon,"  from  the  text 
Matt.  v.  13:  "If  the  salt  have  lost  its  savour,  wherewith  shall 
it  be  salted  ?  It  is  thenceforth  good  for  nothing,  but  to  be  cast 
out,  and  to  be  trodden  under  foot  of  men."  He  first  applied 
these  words  to  the  men  who  had  made  trouble  in  the  church, 
declaring  that  they  ought  to  be  trodden  under  foot  until  their 
bowels  gushed  out,  citing  as  a  precedent  that  "  the  apostles  threw 
Judas  Iscariot  down  and  trampled  out  his  bowels,  and  that  Peter 
stabbed  Ananias  and  Sapphira."  It  was  what  followed,  however, 
which  made  the  serious  trouble,  a  defiance  to  their  Missouri  oppo- 
nents in  these  words  :  — 

"  It  is  not  because  we  cannot,  if  we  were  so  disposed,  enjoy  both  the  honors 
and  flatteries  of  the  world,  but  we  have  voluntarily  offered  them  in  sacrifice,  and 
the  riches  of  the  world  also,  for  a  more  durable  substance.  Our  God  has  prom- 
ised a  reward  of  eternal  inheritance,  and  we  have  believed  his  promise,  and, 
though  we  wade  through  great  tribulations,  we  are  in  nothing  discouraged,  for 
we  know  he  that  has  promised  is  faithful.  The  promise  is  sure,  and  the  reward 
is  certain.     It  is  because  of  this  that  we  have  taken  the  spoiling  of  our  goods. 

1  Corrill's  "  Brief  History  of  the  Church,"  p.  29. 


BEGINNING   OF   ACTIVE    HOSTILITIES  197 

Our  cheeks  have  been  given  to  the  smiters,  and  our  heads  to  those  who  have 
plucked  off  the  hair.  We  have  not  only,  when  smitten  on  one  cheek,  turned  the 
other,  but  we  have  done  it  again  and  again,  until  we  are  weary  of  being  smitten, 
and  tired  of  being  trampled  upon.  We  have  proved  the  world  with  kindness ; 
we  have  suffered  their  abuse,  without  cause,  with  patience,  and  have  endured 
without  resentment,  until  this  day,  and  still  their  persecution  and  violence  does 
not  cease.     But  from  this  day  and  this  hour,  we  will  suffer  it  no  more. 

"  We  take  God  and  all  the  holy  angels  to  witness  this  day,  that  we  warn  all 
men,  in  the  name  of  Jesus  Christ,  to  come  on  us  no  more  for  ever,  for,  from  this 
hour,  we  will  bear  it  no  more.  Our  rights  shall  no  more  be  trampled  on  with 
impunity.  The  man,  or  set  of  men,  who  attempt  it,  does  it  at  the  expense  of 
their  lives.  And  that  mob  that  comes  on  us  to  disturb  us,  it  shall  be  between 
us  and  them  a  war  of  extermination,  for  we  will  follow  them  till  the  last  drop 
of  their  blood  is  spilled,  or  else  they  will  have  to  exterminate  us ;  for  we  will  carry 
the  seat  of  war  to  their  own  houses,  and  their  own  families,  and  one  party  or  the 
other  shall  be  utterly  destroyed.     Remember  it  then,  all  men. 

"  We  will  never  be  aggressors  ;  we  will  infringe  on  rights  of  no  people  ;  but 
shall  stand  for  our  own  until  death.  We  claim  our  own  rights,  and  are  willing 
that  all  shall  enjoy  theirs. 

"  No  man  shall  be  at  liberty  to  come  in  our  streets,  to  threaten  us  with  mobs, 
for  if  he  does,  he  shall  atone  for  it  before  he  leaves  the  place :  neither  shall  he  be 
at  liberty  to  vilify  or  slander  any  of  us,  for  suffer  it  we  will  not  in  this  place. 

"  We  therefore  take  all  men  to  record  this  day,  as  did  our  fathers.  And  we 
pledge  this  day  to  one  another,  our  fortunes,  our  lives,  and  our  sacred  honors, 
to  be  delivered  from  the  persecutions  which  we  have  had  to  endure  for  the  last 
nine  years,  or  nearly  that.  Neither  will  we  indulge  any  man,  or  set  of  men,  in 
instituting  vexatious  lawsuits  against  us  to  cheat  us  out  of  our  just  rights.  If 
they  attempt  it  we  say,  woe  be  unto  them.  We  this  day  then  proclaim  ourselves 
free,  with  a  purpose  and  a  determination  that  never  can  be  broken,  no  never, 
no  never,  no  never." 

Ebenezer  Robinson  in  The  Return  (Vol  I,  p.  170)  says:  — 

"  Let  it  be  distinctly  understood  that  President  Rigdon  was  not  alone  respon- 
sible for  the  sentiment  expressed  in  his  oration,  as  that  was  a  carefully  prepared 
document  previously  written,  and  well  understood  by  the  First  Presidency ;  but 
Elder  Rigdon  was  the  mouthpiece  to  deliver  it,  as  he  was  a  natural  orator,  and 
his  delivery  was  powerful  and  effective. 

"  Several  Missouri  gentlemen  of  note,  from  other  counties,  were  present  on 
the  speaker's  stand  at  its  delivery,  with  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  President,  and  Hyrum 
Smith,  Vice  President  of  the  day  ;  and  at  the  conclusion  of  the  oration,  when  the 
president  of  the  day  led  off  with  a  shout  of  '  Hosannah,  Hosannah,  Hosannah,' 
and  joined  in  the  shout  by  the  vast  multitude,  these  Missouri  gentlemen  began 
to  shout  '  hurrah/  but  they  soon  saw  that  did  not  time  with  the  other,  and  they 
ceased  shouting.  A  copy  of  the  oration  was  furnished  the  editor,  and  printed 
in  the  Far  West,  a  weekly  newspaper  printed  in  Liberty,  the  county  seat  of  Clay 
county.     It  was  also  printed  in   pamphlet  form,  by  the  writer  of  this,  in  the 


198  THE    STORY    OF   THE   MORMONS 

printing  office  of  the  Elders'  Journal,  in  the  city  of  Far  West,  a  copy  of  which 
we  have  preserved. 

"  This  oration,  and  the  stand  taken  by  the  church  in  endorsing  it,  and  its 
publication,  undoubtedly  exerted  a  powerful  influence  in  arousing  the  people  of 
the  whole  upper  Missouri  country." 

At  the  trial  of  Rigdon,  when  he  was  cast  out  at  Nauvoo, 
Young  and  others  held  him  alone  responsible  for  this  sermon, 
and  declared  that  it  was  principally  instrumental  in  stirring  up 
the  hostilities  that  ensued. 

A  state  election  was  to  be  held  in  Missouri  early  in  August, 
and  there  was  a  good  deal  of  political  feeling.  Daviess  County 
was  pretty  equally  divided  between  Whigs  and  Democrats,  and 
the  vote  of  the  Mormons  was  sought  by  the  leaders  of  both  parties. 
In  Caldwell  County  the  Saints  were  classed  as  almost  solidly 
Democratic.  When  election  day  came,  the  Danites  in  the  latter 
county  distributed  tickets  on  which  the  Presidency  had  agreed, 
but  this  resulted  in  nothing  more  serious  than  some  criticism  of 
this  interference  of  the  church  in  politics.  But  in  Daviess  County 
trouble  occurred. 

The  Mormons  there  were  warned  by  the  Democrats  that  the 
Whigs  would  attempt  to  prevent  their  voting  at  Gallatin.  Of 
the  ten  houses  in  that  town  at  the  time,  three  were  saloons,  and 
the  material  for  an  election-day  row  was  at  hand.  It  began  with 
an  attack  on  a  Mormon  preacher,  and  ended  in  a  general  fight, 
in  which  there  were  many  broken  heads,  but  no  loss  of  life ;  after 
which,  says  Lee,  who  took  part  in  it,  "  the  Mormons  all  voted."  1 

Exaggerated  reports  of  this  melee  reached  Far  West,  and 
Dr.  Avard,  collecting  a  force  of  150  volunteers,  and  accompanied 
by  Smith  and  Rigdon,  started  for  Daviess  County  for  the  support 
of  their  brethren.  They  came  across  no  mob,  but  they  made  a 
tactical  mistake.  Instead  of  disbanding  and  returning  to  their 
homes,  they,  the  next  morning  (following  Smith's  own  account)2 
"  rode  out  to  view  the  situation."  Their  ride  took  them  to  the 
house  of  a  justice  of  the  peace,  named  Adam  Black,  who  had 
joined  a  band  whose  object  was  the  expulsion  of  the  Mormons. 
Smith  could  not  neglect  the  opportunity  to  remind  the  justice  of 
his  violation  of  his  oath,  and  to  require  of  him  some  satisfaction, 

1  Smith's  autobiography  says,  "  Very  few  of  the  brethren  voted." 

2  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XVI,  p.  229. 


BEGINNING   OF   ACTIVE   HOSTILITIES  199 

"  so  that  we  might  know  whether  he  was  our  friend  or  enemy." 
With  this  view  they  compelled  him  to  sign  what  they  called  "  an 
agreement  of  peace,"  which  the  justice  drew  up  in  this  shape  :  — 

"  I,  Adam  Black,  A  Justice  of  the  Peace  of  Davies  County,  do  hereby  Sertify 
to  the  people  called  Mormin  that  he  is  bound  to  suport  the  constitution  of  this 
state  and  of  the  United  States,  and  he  is  not  attached  to  any  mob,  nor  will  not 
attach  himself  to  any  such  people,  and  so  long  as  they  will  not  molest  me  I  will 
not  molest  them.     This  the  8th  day  of  August,  1838. 

"Adam  Black,  J. P." 

When  the  Mormon  force  returned  to  Far  West,  the  Daviess 
people  secured  warrants  for  the  arrest  of  Smith,  L.  Wight,  and 
others,  charging  them  with  violating  the  law  by  entering  another 
county  armed,  and  compelling  a  justice  of  the  peace  to  obey  their 
mandate,  Black  having  made  an  affidavit  that  he  was  compelled  to 
sign  the  paper  in  order  to  save  his  life.  Wight  threatened  to  resist 
arrest,  and  this  caused  such  a  gathering  of  Missourians  that  Smith 
became  alarmed  and  sent  for  two  lawyers,  General  D.  R.  Atchison 
and  General  Doniphan,  to  come  to  Far  West  as  his  legal  advisers.1 
Acting  on  their  advice,  the  accused  surrendered  themselves,  and 
were  bound  over  to  court  in  $500  bail  for  a  hearing  on  Sep- 
tember 7. 

1  General  Atchison  was  the  major  general  in  command  of  that  division  of  the  state 
militia.  His  early  reports  to  the  governor  must  be  read  in  the  light  of  his  association 
with  Smith  as  counsel.  General  Doniphan  afterward  won  fame  at  Chihuahua  in  the 
Mexican  War. 


CHAPTER   VIII 
A   STATE   OF   CIVIL  WAR 

All  peaceable  occupations  were  now  at  an  end  in  Daviess 
County.  General  Atchison  reported  to  the  governor  that,  on  arriv- 
ing there  on  September  17,  he  found  the  county  practically  deserted, 
the  Gentiles  being  gathered  in  one  camp  and  the  Mormons  in  an- 
other. A  justice  of  the  peace,  in  a  statement  to  the  governor, 
declared,  "  The  Mormons  are  so  numerous  and  so  well  armed  [in 
Daviess  and  Caldwell  counties]  that  the  judicial  power  of  the 
counties  is  wholly  unable  to  execute  any  civil  or  criminal  process 
within  the  limits  of  either  of  the  said  counties  against  a  Mormon  or 
Mormons,  as  they  each  and  every  one  of  them  act  in  concert  and 
outnumber  the  other  citizens."  Lee  says  that  an  order  had  been 
issued  by  the  church  authorities,  commanding  all  the  Mormons  to 
gather  in  two  fortified  camps,  at  Far  West  and  Adam-ondi-Ahman. 
The  men  were  poorly  armed,  but  demanded  to  be  led  against  their 
foes,  being  "  confident  that  God  was  going  to  deliver  the  enemy 
into  our  hands."  1 

Both  parties  now  stood  on  the  defensive,  posting  sentinels,  and 
making  other  preparations  for  a  fight.  Actual  hostilities  soon  en- 
sued. The  Mormons  captured  some  arms  which  their  opponents 
had  obtained,  and  took  them,  with  three  prisoners,  to  Far  West. 
"This  was  a  glorious  day,  indeed,"  says  Smith.2  Citizens  of  Da- 
viess and  Livingston  counties  sent  a  petition  to  Governor  Boggs 
(who  had  succeeded  Dunklin),  dated  September  12,  declaring 
that  they  believed  their  lives,  liberty,  and  property  to  be  "  in  the 
most  imminent  danger  of  being  sacrificed  by  the  hands  of  those 
impostorous  rebels,"  and  asking  for  protection.  The  governor 
had  already  directed  General  Atchison  to  raise  immediately  four 

1  "  Mormonism  Unveiled,"  p.  78. 

2  Smith's  autobiography,  at  this  point,  says:  "  President  Rigdon  and  I  commenced 
this  day  the  study  of  law  under  the  instruction  of  Generals  Atchison  and  Doniphr.n. 
They  think  by  diligent  application  we  can  be  admitted  to  the  bar  in  twelve  months." 
—  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XVI,  p.  246. 

200 


A    STATE    OF   CIVIL   WAR  20T 

hundred  mounted  men  in  view  of  "  indications  of  Indian  disturb- 
ances on  our  immediate  frontier,  and  the  recent  civil  disturbances 
in  the  counties  of  Caldwell,  Daviess,  and  Carroll."  The  calling 
out  of  the  militia  followed,  and  General  Doniphan  found  himself  in 
command  of  about  one  thousand  militiamen.  He  seems  to  have 
used  tact,  and  to  have  employed  his  force  only  as  peace  preservers. 
On  September  20  he  reported  to  Governor  Boggs  that  he  had  dis- 
charged all  his  troops  but  two  companies,  and  that  he  did  not  think 
the  services  of  these  would  be  required  more  than  twenty  days. 
He  estimated  the  Mormon  forces  in  the  disturbed  counties  at  from 
thirteen  hundred  to  fifteen  hundred  men,  most  of  them  carrying  a  x 
rifle,  a  brace  of  pistols,  and  a  broadsword ;  "  so  that,"  he  added, 
"from  their  position,  and  their  fanaticism,  and  their  unalterable 
determination  not  to  be  driven,  much  blood  will  be  spilt  and  much 
suffering  endured  if  a  blow  is  at  once  struck,  without  the  interposi- 
tion of  your  excellency." 

The  people  of  Carroll  County  began  now  to  hold  meetings 
whose  object  was  the  expulsion  of  the  Mormons  from  their  bounda- 
ries, and  some  hundreds  of  them  assembled  in  hostile  attitude 
around  the  little  settlement  of  Dewitt.  The  Mormons  there  pre- 
pared for  defence,  and  sent  an  appeal  to  Far  West  for  aid.  Ac- 
cordingly, one  hundred  Mormons,  including  Smith  and  Rigdon, 
started  to  assist  them,  and  two  companies  of  militia,  under  General 
Parks,  were  hurried  to  the  spot.  General  Parks  reported  to  Gen- 
eral Atchison  on  October  7  that,  on  arriving  there  the  day  before, 
he  found  the  place  besieged  by  two  hundred  or  three  hundred  Mis- 
sourians,  under  a  Dr.  Austin,  with  a  field-piece,  and  defended  by 
two  hundred  or  three  hundred  Mormons  under  G.  M.  Hinckle, 
"who  says  he  will  die  before  he  is  driven  from  thence."  Austin 
expected  speedy  reinforcements  that  would  enable  him  to  take  the 
place  by  assault.  A  petition  addressed  by  the  Mormons  of  Dewitt 
to  the  governor,  as  early  as  September  22,  having  been  ignored, 
and  finding  themselves  outnumbered,  they  agreed  to  abandon  their 
settlement  on  receiving  pay  for  their  improvements,  and  some  fifty 
wagons  conveyed  them  and  their  effects  to  Far  West. 

A  period  of  absolute  lawlessness  in  all  that  section  of  the  state 
followed.  Smith  declared  that  civil  war  existed,  and  that,  as  the 
state  would  not  protect  them,  they  must  look  out  for  themselves. 
He  and  his  associates  made  no  concealment  of  their  purpose  to 


202  THE    STORY    OF   THE    MORMONS 

"  make  clean  work  of  it "  in  driving  the  non-Mormons  from  both 
Daviess  and  Caldwell  counties.  When  warned  that  this  course 
would  array  the  whole  state  against  them,  Smith  replied  that  the 
"  mob  "  (as  the  opponents  of  the  Mormons  were  always  styled) 
were  a  small  minority  of  the  state,  and  would  yield  to  armed  oppo- 
sition ;  the  Mormons  would  defeat  one  band  after  another,  and  so 
proceed  across  the  state,  until  they  reached  St.  Louis,  where  the 
Mormon  army  would  spend  the  winter.  This  calculation  is  a  fair 
illustration  of  Smith's  judgment. 

Armed  bands  of  both  parties  now  rode  over  the  country,  pay- 
ing absolutely  no  respect  to  property  rights,  and  ready  for  a 
"brush"  with  any  opponents.  At  Smith's  suggestion,  a  band  of 
men,  under  the  name  of  the  "  Fur  Company,"  was  formed  to 
"commandeer"  food,  teams,  and  men  for  the  Mormon  campaign. 
■  This  practical  license  to  steal  let  loose  the  worst  element  in  the 
church  organization,  glad  of  any  method  of  revenge  on  those  whom 
they  considered  their  persecutors.  "  Men  of  former  quiet,"  says 
Lee,  who  was  among  the  active  raiders,  "became  perfect  demons 
in  their  efforts  to  spoil  and  waste  away  the  enemies  of  the  church."  1 
Cattle  and  hogs  that  could  not  be  driven  off  were  killed.2  Houses 
were  burned,  not  only  in  the  outlying  country,  but  in  the  towns. 
A  night  attack  by  a  band  of  eighty  men  was  made  on  Gallatin, 
where  some  of  the  houses  were  set  on  fire,  and  two  stores  as  well 
as  private  houses  were  robbed.  The  house  of  one  McBride,  who, 
Lee  says,  had  been  a  good  friend  to  him  and  to  other  Mormons, 
did  not  escape :  "  Every  article  of  moveable  property  was  taken  by 
the  troops  ;  he  was  utterly  ruined."  "  It  appeared  to  me,"  says 
Corrill,  "  that  the  love  of  pillage  grew  upon  them  very  fast,  for  they 
plundered  every  kind  of  property  they  could  get  hold  of,  and  burnt 
many  cabins  in  Daviess,  some  say  80,  and  some  say  150."3 

The  Missourjans  retaliated  in  kind.  Mormons  were  seized  and 
whipped,  and  their  houses  were  burned.  A  lawless  company 
(Pratt  calls  them  banditti),  led  by  one  Gilliam,  embraced  the  oppor- 
tunity to  make  raids  in  the  Mormon  territory.  It  was  soon  found 
necessary  to  collect  the  outlying  Mormons  at  Far  West  and  Adam- 

1  Lee  naively  remarks,  "  In  justice  to  Joseph  Smith  I  cannot  say  that  I  ever  heard 
him  teach,  or  even  encourage,  men  to  pilfer  or  steal  little  t/iings."  — "  Mormonism 
Unveiled,"  p.  90. 

2  W.  Harris's  "  Mormonism  Portrayed,"  p.  30. 

3  "  Brief  History  of  the  Church,"  p.  38. 


A   STATE   OF   CIVIL   WAR  203 

ondi-Ahman,  where  they  were  used  for  purposes  both  of  offence 
and  defence.  The  movements  of  the  Missourians  were  closely 
watched,  and  preparations  were  made  to  burn  any  place  from 
which  a  force  set  out  to  attack  the  Saints. 

One  of  the  Missouri  officers,  Captain  Bogart,  on  October  23, 
warned  some  Mormons  to  leave  the  county,  and,  with  his  com- 
pany of  thirty  or  forty  men,  announced  his  intention  to  "  give 
Far  West  thunder  and  lightning."  When  this  news  reached  Far 
West,  Judge  Higbee,  of  the  county  court,  ordered  Lieutenant  Colo- 
nel Hinckle  to  go  out  with  a  company,  disperse  the  "  mob,"  and 
retake  some  prisoners.  The  Mormons  assembled  at  midnight, 
and  about  seventy-five  volunteers  started  at  once,  under  command 
of  Captain  Patton,  the  Danite  leader,  whose  nickname  was  "Fear 
Not,"  all  on  horseback.  When  they  approached  Crooked  River, 
on  which  Bogart's  force  was  encamped,  fifteen  men  were  sent  in 
advance  on  foot  to  locate  the  enemy.  Just  at  dawn  a  rifle  shot 
sounded,  and  a  young  Mormon,  named  O'Barrion,  fell  mortally 
wounded.  Captain  Patton  ordered  a  charge,  and  led  his  men  at  a 
gallop  down  a  hill  to  the  river,  under  the  bank  of  which  the  Mis- 
sourians were  drawn  up.  The  latter  had  an  advantage,  as  they 
were  in  the  shade,  and  the  Mormons  were  between  them  and  the 
east,  which  the  dawn  was  just  lighting.  Exchanges  of  volleys 
occurred,  and  then  Captain  Patton  ordered  his  men  to  rush  on 
with  drawn  swords  —  they  had  no  bayonets.  This  put  the  Mis- 
sourians to  flight,  but  just  as  they  fled  Captain  Patton  received  a 
mortal  wound.  Three  Mormons  in  all  were  killed  as  a  result  of 
this  battle,  and  seven  wounded,  while  Captain  Bogart  reported  the 
death  of  one  man.1 

The  death  of  "Fear  Not"  was  considered  by  the  Mormons  a 
great  loss.  He  was  buried  with  the  honors  of  war,  says  Robinson, 
"  and  at  his  grave  a  solemn  convention  was  made  to  avenge  his 
death."  Smith,  in  the  funeral  sermon,  reverted  to  his  old  tactics, 
attributing  the  Mormon  losses  to  the  Lord's  anger  against  his  peo- 
ple, because  of  their  unbelief  and  their  unwillingness  to  devote 
their  worldly  treasures  to  the  church. 

The  rout  of  Captain  Bogart's  force,  which  was  a  part  of  the 
state  militia,  increased  the  animosity  against  the  Mormons,  and 
the  wiser  of  the  latter  believed  that  they  would  suffer  a  dire  ven- 

1  Ebenezer  Robinson's  account  in  The  Return,  p.  191. 


204  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

geance.1  This  vengeance  first  made  itself  felt  at  a  settlement  called 
Hawn's  Mill  (of  which  there  are  various  spellings),  some  miles 
from  Far  West,  where  there  were  a  flour  mill,  blacksmith  shop,  and 
other  buildings.  The  Mormons  there  were  advised,  the  day  after  the 
fight  on  Crooked  River,  to  move  into  Far  West  for  protection,  but 
the  owners  of  the  buildings,  knowing  that  these  would  be  burned 
as  soon  as  deserted,  decided  to  remain  and  defend  their  property. 

On  October  30  a  mounted  force  of  Missourians  appeared 
before  the  place.  The  Mormons  ran  into  the  log  blacksmith  shop, 
which  they  thought  would  serve  them  as  a  blockhouse,  but  it 
proved  to  be  a  slaughter-pen.  The  Missourians  surrounded  it,  and, 
sticking  their  rifles  into  every  hole  and  crack,  poured  in  a  deadly 
fire,  killing,  some  reports  say  eighteen,  and  some  thirty-one,  of  the 
Mormons.  The  only  persons  in  the  town  who  escaped  found 
shelter  in  the  woods.  The  Missourians  did  not  lose  a  man.  When 
the  firing  ceased,  they  still  showed  no  mercy,  shooting  a  small  boy 
in  the  leg  after  dragging  him  out  from  under  the  bellows,  and 
hacking  to  death  with  a  corn  cutter  an  old  man  while  he  begged 
for  his  life.  Dead  and  wounded  were  thrown  into  a  well,  and 
some  of  the  wounded,  taken  out  by  rescuers  from  Far  West,  re- 
covered. "  I  heard  one  of  the  militia  tell  General  Clark,"  says 
Corrill,  "  that  a  well  twenty  or  thirty  feet  deep  was  filled  with  their 
dead  bodies  to  within  three  feet  of  the  top."  2 

The  Mormons  have  always  considered  this  "  massacre,"  as  they 
called  it,  the  crowning  outrage  of  their  treatment  in  Missouri,  and 
for  many  years  were  especially  bitter  toward  all  participants  in  it. 
A  letter  from  two  Mormons  in  the  Frontier  Guardian,  dated  Octo- 
ber, 1849,  describing  the  disinterred  human  bones  seen  on  their 
journey  across  the  plains,  said  that  they  recognized  on  the  rude 
tombstone  the  names  of  some  of  their  Missouri  persecutors : 
"  Among  others,  we  noted  at  the  South  Pass  of  the  Rocky  Moun- 
tains the  grave  of  one  E.  Dodd  of  Gallatin,  Missouri.  The  wolves 
had  completely  disinterred  him.  It  is  believed  that  he  was  the 
same  Dodd  that  took  an  active  part  as  a  prominent  mobocrat  in 
the  murder  of  the  Saints  at  Hawn's  Mill,  Missouri ;  if  so,  it  is  a 

1  Corrill's  "  Brief  History  of  the  Church,"  p.  38. 

2  Details  of  this  massacre  will  be  found  in  Lee's  "  Mormonism  Unveiled,"  pp.  7S-S0; 
in  the  Missouri  "Correspondence,  Orders,  etc.,"  p.  82;  the  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XVI, 
p.  507,  and  in  Greene's  "  Facts  Relative  to  the  Expulsion  of  the  Mormons  from  Mis- 
souri," pp.  21-24. 


A   STATE   OF   CIVIL  WAR  205 

righteous  retribution."  Two  Mormon  elders,  describing  a  visit  in 
1889  to  the  scenes  of  the  Mormon  troubles  in  Missouri,  said,  "The 
notorious  Colonel  W.  O.  Jennings,  who  commanded  the  mob  at 
the  [Hawn's  Mill]  massacre,  was  assaulted  in  Chillicothe,  Missouri, 
on  the  evening  of  January  20,  1862,  by  an  unknown  person,  who 
shot  him  on  the  street  with  a  revolver  or  musket,  as  the  Colonel 
was  going  home  after  dark."  x     They  are  silent  as  to  the  avenger. 

Governor  Boggs  now  began  to  realize  the  seriousness  of  the 
situation  that  he  was  called  to  meet,  and  on  October  26  he  directed 
General  John  B.  Clark  (who  was  not  the  ranking  general)  to  raise, 
for  the  protection  of  the  citizens  of  Daviess  County,  four  hundred 
mounted  men.  This  order  he  followed  the  next  day  with  the 
following,  which  has  become  the  most  famous  of  the  orders 
issued  during  this  campaign,  under  the  designation  "  the  order  of 

extermination  "  :  — 

"  Headquarters  of  the  Militia, 
"City  of  Jefferson,  Oct.  27,  1838. 

"  Gen.  John  B.  Clark, 

"Sir:  —  Since  the  order  of  this  morning  to  you,  directing  you  to  cause  four 
hundred  mounted  men  to  be  raised  within  your  Division,  I  have  received  by  Amos 
Rees,  Esq.,  of  Ray  County  and  Wiley  C.  Williams,  Esq.,  one  of  my  aids,  infor- 
mation of  the  most  appalling  character,  which  entirely  changes  the  face  of  things, 
and  places  the  Mormons  in  the  attitude  of  an  open  and  avowed  defiance  of  the 
laws,  and  of  having  made  war  upon  the  people  of  this  state.  Your  orders  are, 
therefore,  to  hasten  your  operations  with  all  possible  speed. 

"  The  Mormons  must  be  treated  as  enemies,  and  must  be  exterminated  or 
driveii  from  the  State  if  necessary  for  the  public  peace  —  their  outrages  are  be- 
yond all  description.  If  you  can  increase  your  force,  you  are  authorized  to  do 
so  to  any  extent  you  may  consider  necessary.  I  have  just  issued  orders  to  Maj. 
Gen.  Willock,  of  Marion  County,  to  raise  five  hundred  men,  and  to  march  them 
to  the  northern  part  of  Daviess,  and  there  unite  with  Gen.  Doniphan,  of  Clay, 
who  has  been  ordered  with  five  hundred  men  to  proceed  to  the  same  point  for 
the  purpose  of  intercepting  the  retreat  of  the  Mormons  to  the  north.  They  have 
been  directed  to  communicate  with  you  by  express ;  you  can  also  communicate 
with  them  if  you  find  it  necessary. 

"Instead  therefore  of  proceeding,  as  at  first  directed,  to  reinstate  the  citi- 
zens of  Daviess  in  their  homes,  you  will  proceed  immediately  to  Richmond  and 
then  operate  against  the  Mormons.  Brig.  Gen.  Parks,  of  Ray,  has  been  ordered 
to  have  four  hundred  of  his  brigade  in  readiness  to  join  you  at  Richmond.  The 
whole  force  will  be  placed  under  your  command. 

"I  am  very  respectfully, 
"  Your  ob't  serv't, 

"  L.  W.  Boggs,  Commander-in-chief" 

1  "  Infancy  of  the  Church  "  (pamphlet). 


206  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

The  "appalling  information"  received  by  the  governor  from 
his  aids  was  contained  in  a  letter  dated  October  25,  which  stated 
that  the  Mormons  were  "  destroying  all  before  them  "  ;  that  they 
had  burned  Gallatin  and  Mill  Pond,  and  almost  every  house  be- 
tween these  places,  plundered  the  whole  country,  and  defeated 
Captain  Bogart's  company,  and  had  determined  to  burn  Richmond 
that  night.  "These  creatures,"  said  the  letter,  "will  never  stop 
until  they  are  stopped  by  the  strong  hand  of  force,  and  something 
must  be  done,  and  that  speedily."  1 

The  language  of  Governor  Boggs's  letter  to  General  Clark  can- 
not be  defended.  The  Mormons  have  always  made  great  capital 
of  his  declaration  that  the  Mormons  "must  be  exterminated,"  and 
a  man  of  judicial  temperament  would  have  selected  other  words, 
no  matter  how  necessary  he  deemed  it,  for  political  reasons,  to 
show  his  sympathy  with  the  popular  cause.  But,  on  the  other 
hand,  the  governor  was  only  accepting  the  challenge  given  by 
Rigdon  in  his  recent  Fourth  of  July  address,  when  the  latter  de- 
clared that  if  a  mob  disturbed  the  Mormons,  "it  shall  be  between 
us  and  them  a  war  of  extermination,  for  we  will  follow  them  till 
the  last  drop  of  their  blood  is  spilled,  or  else  they  will  have  to  ex- 
terminate us."  What  compromise  there  could  have  been  between 
a  band  of  fanatics  obeying  men  like  Smith  and  Rigdon,  and  the 
class  of  settlers  who  made  up  the  early  Missouri  population,  it  is 
impossible  to  conceive.  The  Mormons  were  simply  impossible  as 
neighbors,  and  it  had  become  evident  that  they  could  no  more  re- 
main peaceably  in  the  state  than  they  could  a  few  years  previously 
in  Jackson  County. 

General  Atchison,  of  Smith's  counsel,  was  not  called  on  by  the 
governor  in  these  latest  movements,  because,  as  the  governor  ex- 
plained in  a  letter  to  General  Clark,  "  there  was  much  dissatisfaction 
manifested  toward  him  by  the  people  opposed  to  the  Mormons." 
But  he  had  seen  his  mistake,  and  he  united  with  General  Lucas  in 
a  letter  to  the  governor  under  date  of  October  28,  in  which  they 
said,  "  from  late  outrages  committed  by  the  Mormons,  civil  war  is 
inevitable,"  and  urged  the  governor's  presence  in  the  disturbed 
district.  Governor  Boggs  excused  himself  from  complying  with 
this  request  because  of  the  near  approach  of  the  meeting  of  the 
legislature. 

1  For  text  of  letter,  see  "  Correspondence,  Orders,  etc.,"  p.  59. 


A   STATE   OF   CIVIL   WAR 


207 


General  Lucas,  acting  under  his  interpretation  of  the  gov- 
ernor's order,  had  set  out  on  October  28  for  Far  West  from  near 
Richmond,  with  a  force  large  enough  to  alarm  the  Mormon  leaders. 
Robinson,  speaking  of  the  outlook  from  their  standpoint  at  this 
time,  says,  "  We  looked  for  warm  work,  as  there  were  large  num- 
bers of  armed  men  gathering  in  Daviess  County,  with  avowed 
determination  of  driving  the  Mormons  from  the  county,  and  we 
began  to  feel  as  determined  that  the  Missourians  should  be  ex- 
pelled from  the  county."  1  The  Mormons  did  not  hear  of  the  ap- 
proach of  General  Lucas's  force  until  it  was  near  the  town.  Then 
the  southern  boundary  was  hastily  protected  with  a  barricade  of 
wagons  and  logs,  and  the  night  of  October  30-3 1  was  employed 
by  all  the  inhabitants  in  securing  their  possessions  for  flight,  in 
anticipation  of  a  battle  the  next  day. 

1  The  Return,  Vol.  I,  p.  189. 


CHAPTER   IX 

THE   FINAL   EXPULSION   FROM   THE   STATE 

At  eight  o'clock  the  next  morning  the  commander  of  the 
militia  sent  a  flag  of  truce  to  the  Mormons  which  Colonel  Hinckle, 
for  the  Mormons,  met.  General  Lucas  submitted  the  following 
terms,  as  necessary  to  carry  out  the  governor's  orders :  — 

"i.   To  give  up  their  leaders  to  be  tried  and  punished. 

"  2.  To  make  an  appropriation  of  their  property,  all  who  have  taken  up  arms, 
to  the  payment  of  their  debts  and  indemnity  for  damage  done  by  them. 

"3.  That  the  balance  should  leave  the  State,  and  be  protected  out  by  the 
militia,  but  be  permitted  to  remain  under  protection  until  further  orders  were  re- 
ceived by  the  commander-in-chief. 

"  4.    To  give  up  the  arms  of  every  description,  to  be  receipted  for." 

While  these  propositions  were  under  consideration,  General 
Lucas  asked  that  Smith,  Rigdon,  Lyman  Wight,  P.  P.  Pratt,  and 
G.  W.  Robinson  be  given  up  as  hostages,  and  this  was  done. 
Contemporary  Mormon  accounts  imputed  treachery  to  Colonel 
Hinckle  in  this  matter,  and  said  that  Smith  and  his  associates  were 
lured  into  the  militia  camp  by  a  ruse.  General  Lucas's  report  to 
the  governor  says  that  the  proposition  for  a  conference  came  from 
Hinckle.  Hyrum  Smith,  in  an  account  of  the  trial  of  the  prisoners, 
printed  some  years  later  in  the  Times  and  Seasons,  said  that  all  the 
men  who  surrendered  were  that  night  condemned  by  a  court-martial 
to  be  shot,  but  were  saved  by  General  Doniphan's  interference. 
Lee's  account  agrees  with  this,  but  says  that  Smith  surrendered 
voluntarily,  to  save  the  lives  of  his  followers. 

General  Lucas  received  the  surrender  of  Far  West,  on  the 
terms  named,  in  advance  of  the  arrival  of  General  Clark,  who  was 
making  forced  marches.  After  the  surrender,  General  Lucas  dis- 
banded the  main  body  of  his  force,  and  set  out  with  his  prisoners 
for  Independence,  the  original  site  of  Zion.     General  Clark,  learn- 

208 


THE   FINAL   EXPULSION   FROM   THE   STATE  209 

ing  of  this,  ordered  him  to  transfer  the  prisoners  to  Richmond, 
which  was  done. 

Hearing  that  the  guard  left  by  General  Lucas  at  Far  West 
were  committing  outrages,  General  Clark  rode  to  that  place 
accompanied  by  his  field  officers.  He  found  no  disorder,1  but 
instituted  a  military  court  of  inquiry,  which  resulted  in  the  arrest 
of  forty-six  additional  Mormons,  who  were  sent  to  Richmond  for 
trial.  The  facts  on  which  these  arrests  were  made  were  obtained 
principally  from  Dr.  Avard,  the  Danite,  who  was  captured  by  a 
militia  officer.  "  No  one,"  General  Clark  says,  "  disclosed  any 
useful  matter  until  he  was  captured." 

After  these  arrests  had  been  made,  General  Clark  called  the 
other  Mormons  at  Far  West  together,  and  addressed  them,  telling 
them  that  they  could  now  go  to  their  fields  for  corn,  wood,  etc., 
but  that  the  terms  of  the  surrender  must  be  strictly  lived  up  to. 
Their  leading  men  had  been  given  up,  their  arms  surrendered,  and 
their  property  assigned  as  stipulated,  but  it  now  remained  for  them 
to  leave  the  state  forthwith.     On  that  subject  the  general  said  :  — 

"The  character  of  this  state  has  suffered  almost  beyond  redemption,  from 
the  character,  conduct,  and  influence  that  you  have  exerted ;  and  we  deem  it  an 
act  of  justice  to  restore  her  character  to  its  former  standing  among  the  states  by 
every  proper  means.  The  orders  of  the  governor  to  me  were  that  you  should  be 
exterminated  and  not  allowed  to  remain  in  the  state.  And  had  not  your  leaders 
been  given  up,  and  the  terms  of  the  treaty  complied  with,  before  this  time  you 
and  your  families  would  have  been  destroyed,  and  your  houses  in  ashes.  There 
is  a  discretionary  power  vested  in  my  hands,  which,  considering  your  circum- 
stances, I  shall  exercise  for  a  season.     You  are  indebted  to  me  for  this  clemency. 

"  I  do  not  say  that  you  shall  go  now,  but  you  must  not  think  of  staying  here 
another  season,  or  of  putting  in  crops,  for  the  moment  you  do  this  the  citizens 
will  be  upon  you ;  and  if  I  am  called  here  again,  in  a  case  of  a  non-compliance 
of  a  treaty  made,  do  not  think  that  I  shall  do  as  I  have  done  now.  You  need  not 
expect  any  mercy,  but  extermination,  for  I  am  determined  the  governor's  orders 
shall  be  executed.  As  for  your  leaders,  do  not  think,  do  not  imagine  for  a  mo- 
ment, do  not  let  it  enter  into  your  mind,  that  they  will  be  delivered  and  restored 
to  you  again,  for  their  fate  is  fixed,  their  die  is  cast,  their  doom  is  sealed. 

"  I  am  sorry,  gentlemen,  to  see  so  many  apparently  intelligent  men  found  in 
the  situation  you  are ;  and  O  !  if  I  could  invoke  the  great  spirit,  the  unknown 
God,  to  rest  upon  and  deliver  you  from  that  awful  chain  of  superstition,  and  lib- 

1  "  Much  property  was  destroyed  by  the  troops  in  town  during  their  stay  there,  such 
as  burning  house  logs,  rails,  corn  cribs,  boards,  etc.,  the  using  of  corn  and  hay,  the  plun- 
dering of  houses,  the  killing  of  cattle,  sheep,  and  hogs,  and  also  the  taking  of  horses  not 
their  own."  —  "  Mormon  Memorial  to  Missouri  Legislature,"  December  10,  1838. 
P 


2IO  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

erate  you  from  those  fetters  of  fanaticism  with  which  you  are  bound,  that  you 
no  longer  do  homage  to  a  man.  I  would  advise  you  to  scatter  abroad,  and 
never  organize  yourselves  with  bishops,  presidents,  etc.,  lest  you  excite  the 
jealousies  of  the  people,  and  subject  yourselves  to  the  same  calamities  that  have 
now  come  upon  you.  You  have  always  been  the  aggressors  :  you  have  brought 
upon  yourselves  these  difficulties  by  being  disaffected,  and  not  being  subject  to 
rule.  And  my  advice  is  that  you  become  as  other  citizens,  lest  by  a  recurrence 
of  these  events  you  bring  upon  yourselves  irretrievable  ruin." 

General  Clark  then  marched  with  his  prisoners  to  Richmond, 
where  the  trial  of  all  the  accused  began  on  November  12,  before 
Judge  A.  A.  King.  By  November  29  the  called-out  militia  had 
been  disbanded,  and  on  that  date  General  Clark  made  his  final 
report  to  the  governor.  In  this  he  asserted  that  the  militia  under 
him  had  conducted  themselves  as  honorable  citizen  soldiers,  and 
enclosed  a  certificate  signed  by  five  Mormons,  including  W.  W. 
Phelps,  Colonel  Hinckle,  and  John  Corrill,  confirming  this  state- 
ment, and  saying,  "We  have  no  hesitation  in  saying  that  the 
course  taken  by  General  Clark  with  the  Mormons  was  necessary 
for  the  public  peace,  and  that  the  Mormons  are  generally  satisfied 
with  his  course." 

In  his  summing  up  of  the  results  of  the  campaign,  General 
Clark  said :  — 

"  It  [the  Mormon  insurrection]  had  for  its  object  Dominion,  the  ultimate 
subjugation  of  this  State  and  the  Union  to  the  laws  of  a  few  men  called  the 
Presidency.  Their  church  was  to  be  built  up  at  any  rate,  peaceably  if  they  could, 
forcibly  if  necessary.  These  people  had  banded  themselves  together  in  societies, 
the  object  of  which  was  to  first  drive  from  their  society  such  as  refused  to  join 
them  in  their  unholy  purposes,  and  then  to  plunder  the  surrounding  country,  and 
ultimately  to  subject  the  state  to  their  rule.1' 

"  The  whole  number  of  the  Mormons  killed  through  the  whole  difficulty,  so 
far  as  I  can  ascertain,  are  about  forty,  and  several  wounded.  There  has  been  one 
citizen  killed,  and  about  fifteen  badly  wounded."  : 

Brigadier  General  R.  Wilson  was  sent  with  his  command  to 
settle  the  Mormon  question  in  Daviess  County.  Finding  the  town 
of  Adam-ondi-Ahman  unguarded,  he  placed  guards  around  it,  and 
gathered  in  the  Mormons  of  the  neighborhood,  to  the  number  of 
about  two  hundred.  Most  of  these,  he  explained  in  his  report,  were 
late  comers  from  Canada  and  the  northern  border  of  the  United 
States,  and  were  living  mostly  in  tents,  without  any  adequate  pro- 
vision for  the  winter.     Those  against  whom  criminal  charges  had 

1  "  Correspondence,  Orders,  etc.,"  p.  92. 


THE   FINAL   EXPULSION   FROM   THE   STATE  211 

been  made  were  placed  under  arrest,  and  the  others  were  informed 
that  General  Wilson  would  protect  them  for  ten  days,  and  would 
guarantee  their  safety  to  Caldwell  County  or  out  of  the  state. 
"  This  appeared  to  me,"  said  General  Wilson,  in  his  report  to  Gen- 
eral Clark,  "  to  be  the  only  course  to  prevent  a  general  massacre." 
In  this  report  General  Wilson  presented  the  following  picture  of 
the  situation  there  as  he  found  it :  — 

"It  is  perfectly  impossible  for  me  to  convey  to  you  anything  like  the  awful 
state  of  things  which  exists  here  —  language  is  inadequate  to  the  task.  The  citi- 
zens of  a  whole  county  first  plundered,  and  then  their  houses  and  other  buildings 
burnt  to  ashes ;  without  houses,  beds,  furniture,  or  even  clothing  in  many  in- 
stances, to  meet  the  inclemency  of  the  weather.  I  confess  that  my  feelings  have 
been  shocked  with  the  gross  brutality  of  these  Mormons,  who  have  acted  more 
like  demons  from  the  infernal  regions  than  human  beings.  Under  these  circum- 
stances, you  will  readily  perceive  that  it  would  be  perfectly  impossible  for  me  to 
protect  the  Mormons  against  the  just  indignation  of  the  citizens.  .  .  .  The 
Mormons  themselves  appeared  pleased  with  the  idea  of  getting  away  from  their 
enemies  and  a  justly  insulted  people,  and  I  believe  all  have  applied  and  received 
permits  to  leave  the  county ;  and  I  suppose  about  fifty  families  have  left,  and 
others  are  hourly  leaving,  and  at  the  end  of  ten  days  Mormonism  will  not  be 
known  in  Daviess  county.  This  appeared  to  me  to  be  the  only  course  left  to 
prevent  a  general  massacre."  * 

The  Mormons  began  to  depart  at  once,  and  in  ten  days  nearly 
all  had  left.  Lee,  who  acted  as  guide  to  General  Wilson,  and 
whose  wife  and  babe  were  at  Adam-ondi-Ahman,  says  :  — 

"Every  house  in  Adam-on-Diamond  was  searched  by  the  troops  for  stolen 
property.  They  succeeded  in  finding  very  much  of  the  Gentile  property  that  had 
been  captured  by  the  Saints  in  the  various  raids  they  made  through  the  country. 
Bedding  of  every  kind  and  in  large  quantities  was  found  and  reclaimed  by  the 
owners.  Even  spinning  wheels,  soap  barrels,  and  other  articles  were  recovered. 
Each  house  where  stolen  property  was  found  was  certain  to  receive  a  Missouri 
blessing  from  the  troops.  The  men  who  had  been  most  active  in  gathering 
plunder  had  fled  to  Illinois  to  escape  the  vengeance  of  the  people,  leaving  their 
families  to  suffer  for  the  sins  of  the  believing  Saints.1' 2 

We  may  now  follow  the  fortunes  of  the  Mormon  prisoners. 
On  arriving  at  Richmond,  they  were  confined  in  the  unfinished 
brick  court-house.  The  only  inside  work  on  this  building  that 
was  completed  was  a  partly  laid  floor,  and  to  this  the  prisoners 
were  restricted  by  a  railing,  with  a  guard  inside  and  out.  "  Two 
three-pail  iron  kettles  for  boiling  our  meat,  and  two  or  more  iron 

1  "  Correspondence,  Orders,  etc.,"  p.  78.  2  "  Mormonism  Unveiled,"  p.  89. 


212  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

bake  kettles,  or  Dutch  ovens,  were  furnished  us,"  says  Robinson, 
"  together  with  sacks  of  corn  meal  and  meat  in  bulk.  We  did  our 
own  cooking.  This  arrangement  suited  us  very  well,  and  we  en- 
joyed ourselves  as  well  as  men  could  under  such  circumstances."1 

Joseph  and  Hyrum  Smith,  Rigdon,  Lyman  Wight,  Caleb  Bald- 
win, and  A.  McRea  were  soon  transferred  to  the  jail  at  Liberty. 
The  others  were  then  put  into  the  debtor's  room  of  Richmond  jail, 
a  two-story  log  structure  which  was  not  well  warmed,  but  they  were 
released  on  light  bail  in  a  few  days. 

A  report  of  the  testimony  given  at  the  hearing  of  the  Mormon 
prisoners  before  Judge  King  will  be  found  in  the  "  Correspond- 
ence, Orders,  etc.,"  published  by  order  of  the  Missouri  legislature, 
pp.  97-149.  Among  the  Mormons  who  gave  evidence  against  the 
prisoners  were  Avard,  the  Danite,  John  Whitmer,  W.  W.  Phelps, 
John  Corrill,  and  Colonel  Hinckle.  There  were  thirty-seven  wit- 
nesses for  the  state  and  seven  for  the  defence.  As  showing  the 
character  of  the  testimony,  the  following  selections  will  suffice. 

Avard  told  the  story  of  the  origin  of  the  Danites,  and  said  that 
he  considered  Joseph  Smith  their  organizer ;  that  the  constitution 
was  approved  by  Smith  and  his  counsellors  at  Rigdon's  house,  and 
that  the  members  felt  themselves  as  much  bound  to  obey  the  heads 
of  the  church  as  to  obey  God.  Just  previous  to  the  arrival  of  Gen- 
eral Lucas  at  Far  West,  Smith  had  assembled  his  force,  and  told 
them  that,  for  every  one  they  lacked  in  numbers  as  compared  with 
their  opponents,  the  Lord  would  send  angels  to  fight  for  them. 
He  presented  the  text  of  the  indictment  against  Cowdery,  Whit- 
mer, and  others,  drawn  up  by  Rigdon. 

John  Corrill  testified  about  the  effect  of  Rigdon's  "salt  ser- 
mon," and  also  that  he  had  attended  meetings  of  the  Danites,  and 
had  expressed  disapproval  of  the  doctrine  that,  if  one  brother  got 
into  difficulty,  it  was  the  duty  of  the  others  to  help  him  out,  right 
or  wrong ;  that  Smith  and  Rigdon  attended  one  of  these  meetings, 
and  that  he  had  heard  Smith  declare  at  a  meeting,  "  if  the  people 
would  let  us  alone,  we  would  preach  the  Gospel  to  them  in  peace, 
but  if  they  came  on  us  to  molest  us,  we  would  establish  our  religion 
by  the  sword,  and  that  he  would  become  to  this  generation  a  sec- 
ond Mohammed";  just  after  the  expulsion  of  the  Mormons  from 
Dewitt,  Smith  declared  hostilities  against  their  opponents  in  Cald- 

1  The  Return,  Vol.  I,  p.  234. 


THE   FINAL   EXPULSION   FROM   THE   STATE  213 

well  and  Daviess  counties,  and  had  a  resolution  passed,  looking  to 
the  confiscation  of  the  property  of  the  brethren  who  would  not 
join  him  in  the  march ;  and  on  a  Sunday  he  advised  the  people 
that  they  might  at  times  take  property  which  at  other  times  it 
would  be  wrong  to  take,  citing  David's  eating  of  the  shew  bread, 
and  the  Saviour's  plucking  ears  of  corn.1  Reed  Peck  testified  to 
the  same  effect. 

John  Clemison  testified  to  the  presence  of  Smith  at  the  early 
meetings  of  the  Danites ;  that  Rigdon  and  Smith  had  advised  that 
those  who  were  backward  in  joining  his  fighting  force  should  be 
placed  in  the  front  ranks  at  the  point  of  pitchforks ;  that  a  great 
deal  of  Gentile  property  was  brought  into  Mormon  camps,  and  that 
"  it  was  frequently  observed  among  the  troops  that  the  time  had 
come  when  the  riches  of  the  Gentiles  should  be  consecrated  to  the 
state." 

W.  W.  Phelps  testified  that  in  the  previous  April  he  had  heard 
Rigdon  say,  at  a  meeting  in  Far  West,  that  they  had  borne  perse- 
cution and  lawsuits  long  enough,  and  that,  if  a  sheriff  came  with 
writs  against  them,  they  would  kill  him,  and  that  Smith  approved 
his  words.  Phelps  said  that  the  character  of  Rigdon's  "  salt  ser- 
mon "  was  known  and  discussed  in  advance  of  its  delivery. 

John  Whitmer  testified  that,  soon  after  the  preaching  of  the 
"  salt  sermon,"  a  leading  Mormon  told  him  that  they  did  not  intend 
to  regard  any  longer  "the  niceties  of  the  law  of  the  land,"  as  "the 
kingdom  spoken  of  by  the  Prophet  Daniel  had  been  set  up." 

The  testimony  concerning  the  Danite  organization  and  Smith's 
threats  against  the  Missourians  received  confirmation  in  an  affida- 
vit by  no  less  a  person  than  Thomas  B.  Marsh,  the  First  President 
of  the  twelve  Apostles,  before  a  justice  of  the  peace  in  Ray  County, 
in  October,  1838.     In  this  Marsh  said  :  — 

"  The  plan  of  said  Smith,  the  Prophet,  is  to  take  this  state ;  and  he  professes 
to  his  people  to  intend  taking  the  United  States  and  ultimately  the  whole  world. 
The  Prophet  inculcates  the  notion,  and  it  is  believed  by  every  true  Mormon,  that 
Smith's  prophecies  are  superior  to  the  law  of  the  land.  I  have  heard  the  Prophet 
say  that  he  would  yet  tread  down  his  enemies,  and  walk  over  their  dead  bodies ; 
that,  if  he  was  not  let  alone,  he  would  be  a  second  Mohammed  to  this  generation, 
and  that  he  would  make  it  one  gore  of  blood  from  the  Rocky  Mountains  to  the 
Atlantic  Ocean." 

1  Corrill,  Avard,  Hinckle,  Marsh,  and  others  were  formally  excommunicated  at  a 
council  held  at  Quincy,  Illinois,  on  March  17, 1839,  over  which  Brigham  Young  presided. 


214  THE   STORY   OF  THE   MORMONS 

This  affidavit  was  accompanied  by  an  affidavit  by  Orson  Hyde, 
who  was  afterward  so  prominent  in  the  councils  of  the  church, 
stating  that  he  knew  most  of  Marsh's  statements  to  be  true,  and 
believed  the  others  to  be  true  also. 

Of  the  witnesses  for  the  defence,  two  women  and  one  man  gave 
testimony  to  establish  an  alibi  for  Lyman  Wight  at  the  time  of  the 
last  Mormon  expedition  to  Daviess  County ;  Rigdon's  daughter 
Nancy  testified  that  she  had  heard  Avard  say  that  he  would  swear 
to  a  lie  to  accomplish  an  object ;  and  J.  W.  Barlow  gave  testimony 
to  show  that  Smith  and  Rigdon  were  not  with  the  men  who  took 
part  in  the  battle  on  Crooked  Creek. 

Rigdon,  in  an  "  Appeal  to  the  American  People,"  which  he 
wrote  soon  after,  declared  that  this  trial  was  a  compound  between 
an  inquisition  and  a  criminal  court,  and  that  the  testimony  of  Avard 
was  given  to  save  his  own  life.  "  A  part  of  an  armed  body  of 
men,"  he  says,  "  stood  in  the  presence  of  the  court  to  see  that  the 
witnesses  swore  right,  and  another  part  was  scouring  the  country 
to  drive  out  of  it  every  witness  they  could  hear  of  whose  testimony 
would  be  favorable  to  the  defendants.  If  a  witness  did  not  swear 
to  please  the  court,  he  or  she  would  be  threatened  to  be  cast  into 
prison.  ...  A  man  by  the  name  of  Allen  began  to  tell  the  story 
of  Bogart's  burning  houses  in  the  south  part  of  Caldwell;  he  was 
kicked  out  of  the  house,  and  three  men  put  after  him  with  loaded 
guns,  and  he  hardly  escaped  with  his  life.  [Finally]  our  lawyers, 
General  Doniphan  and  Amos  Rees,  told  us  not  to  bring  our  wit- 
nesses there  at  all,  for  if  we  did,  there  would  not  be  one  of  them 
left  for  the  final  trial.  .  .  .  As  to  making  any  impression  on  King, 
if  a  cohort  of  angels  were  to  come  down  and  declare  we  were  clear, 
Doniphan  said  it  would  be  all  the  same,  for  he  had  determined  from 
the  beginning  to  cast  us  into  prison."  Smith  alleged  that  Judge 
King  was  biassed  against  them  because  his  brother-in-law  had  been 
killed  during  the  early  conflicts  in  Jackson  County. 

Several  of  the  defendants  were  discharged  during  or  after  the 
close  of  the  hearing.  Smith,  Rigdon,  Lyman  Wight,  and  three 
others  were  ordered  committed  to  the  Clay  County  jail  at  Liberty 
on  a  charge  of  treason  ;  Parley  P.  Pratt  and  four  others  to  the  Ray 
County  jail  on  a  charge  of  murder ;  and  twenty-three  others  were 
ordered  to  give  bail  on  a  charge  of  arson,  burglary,  robbery,  and 
larceny,  and  all  but  eight  of  these  were  locked  up  in  default  of 


THE   FINAL   EXPULSION   FROM   THE   STATE  215 

bail.  The  prisoners  confined  at  Liberty  secured  a  writ  of  habeas 
corpus  soon  after,  but  only  Rigdon  was  ordered  released,  and  he 
thought  it  best  for  his  safety  to  go  back  to  the  jail.  He  afterward, 
with  the  connivance  of  the  sheriff  and  jailer,  made  his  escape  at 
night,  and  reached  Quincy,  Illinois,  in  February,  1839. 

P.  P.  Pratt,  in  his  "  Late  Persecution,"  says  that  the  prisoners 
were  kept  in  chains  most  of  the  time,  and  that  Rigdon,  although 
ill,  "was  compelled  to  sleep  on  the  floor,  with  a  chain  and  padlock 
round  his  ankle,  and  fastened  to  six  others."  Hyrum  Smith,  in  a 
"  Communication  to  the  Saints  "  printed  a  year  later,  says ;  "  We 
suffered  much  from  want  of  proper  food,  and  from  the  nauseous 
cell  in  which  I  was  confined." 

Joseph  Smith  remained  in  the  Liberty  jail  until  April,  1839.  At 
one  time  all  the  prisoners  nearly  made  their  escape,  "but  unfortu- 
nately for  us,  the  timber  of  the  wall  being  very  hard,  our  augur 
handles  gave  out,  which  hindered  us  longer  than  we  expected," 
and  the  plan  was  discovered. 

The  prophet  employed  a  good  deal  of  his  time  in  jail  in  ; 
writing  long  epistles  to  the  church.  He  gave  out  from  there  also 
three  "revelations,"  the  chief  direction  of  which  was  that  the 
brethren  should  gather  up  all  possible  information  about  their 
persecutions,  and  make  out  a  careful  statement  of  their  property 
losses.  His  letters  reveal  the  character  of  the  man  as  it  had 
already  been  exhibited  —  headlong  in  his  purposes,  vindictive 
toward  any  enemy.  He  says  in  his  biography  that  he  paid  his 
lawyers  about  $50,000  "in  cash,  lands,  etc."  (a  pretty  good  sum 
for  the  refugee  from  Ohio  to  amass  so  soon),  but  got  little  prac- 
tical assistance  from  them,  "  for  sometimes  they  were  afraid  to 
act  on  account  of  the  mob,  and  sometimes  they  were  so  drunk  as 
to  incapacitate  them  for  business."  In  one  of  his  letters  to  the 
church  he  thus  speaks  of  some  of  his  recent  allies,  "  This  poor 
man  [W.  W.  Phelps]  who  professes  to  be  much  of  a  prophet, 
has  no  other  dumb  ass  to  ride  but  David  Whitmer,  or  to  forbid 
his  madness  when  he  goes  up  to  curse  Israel ;  but  this  not  being 
of  the  same  kind  as  Balaam's,  therefore,  notwithstanding  the  angel 
appeared  unto  him,  yet  he  could  not  sufficiently  penetrate  his 
understanding  but  that  he  brays  out  cursings  instead  of  blessings."  1 

On    April   6,   Smith   and    his  fellow-prisoners  were  taken   to 

1  Times  and  Seasons,  Vol.  I,  p.  82. 


2l6  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

Daviess  County  for  trial.  The  judge  and  jury  before  whom  their 
cases  came  were,  according  to  his  account,  all  drunk.  Smith 
and  four  others  were  promptly  indicted  for  "  murder,  treason, 
burglary,  arson,  larceny,  theft,  and  stealing."  They  at  once 
secured  a  change  of  venue  to  Boone  County,  120  miles  east,  and 
set  out  for  that  place  on  April  15,  but  they  never  reached  there. 
Smith  says  they  were  enabled  to  escape  because  their  guard  got 
drunk.  In  a  newspaper  interview  printed  many  years  later, 
General  Doniphan  is  quoted  as  saying  that  he  had  it  on  good 
authority  that  Smith  paid  the  sheriff  and  his  guards  $1 100  to  allow 
the  prisoners  to  escape.  Ebenezer  Robinson  says  that  Joseph 
and  Hyrum  were  allowed  to  ride  away  on  two  fine  horses,  and 
that,  a  few  weeks  later,  he  saw  the  sheriff  at  Quincy  making 
Joseph  a  friendly  visit,  at  which  time  he  received  pay  for  the 
animals.1  The  party  arrived  at  Quincy,  Illinois,  on  April  22,  and 
were  warmly  welcomed  by  the  brethren  who  had  preceded  them. 
Among  these  was  Brigham  Young,  who  was  among  those  who 
had  found  it  necessary  to  flee  the  state  before  the  final  surrender 
was  arranged.  The  Missouri  authorities,  as  we  shall  see,  for  a 
long  time  continued  their  efforts  to  secure  the  extradition  of  Smith, 
but  he  never  returned  to  Missouri. 

As  the  Mormons  had  tried  to  set  aside  their  original  agreement 
with  the  Jackson  County  people,  so,  while  their  leaders  were  in 
jail,  they  endeavored  to  find  means  to  break  their  treaty  with 
General  Lucas.  Their  counsel,  General  Atchison,  was  a  member 
of  the  legislature,  and  he  warmly  espoused  their  cause.  They 
sent  in  a  petition,2  which  John  Corrill  presented,  giving  a  state- 
ment in  detail  of  the  opposition  they  had  encountered  in  the  state, 
and  asking  for  the  enactment  of  a  law  "  rescinding  the  order  of 
the  governor  to  drive  us  from  the 'state,  and  also  giving  us  the 
sanction  of  the  legislature  to  inherit  our  lands  in  peace  " ;  as  well 
as  disapproving  of  the  "  deed  of  trust,"  as  they  called  the  second 
section  of  the  Lucas  treaty.  The  petition  was  laid  on  the  table. 
An  effort  for  an  investigation  of  the  whole  trouble  by  a  legislative 
committee  was  made,  and  an  act  to  that  effect  was  passed  in  1839, 
but  nothing  practical  came  of  it.  When  the  Mormon  memorial 
was  called  up,  its  further  consideration  was  postponed  until  July, 

1  The  Return,  p.  243. 

2  For  full  text,  see  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XVI,  pp.  586-589. 


THE   FINAL   EXPULSION   FROM   THE   STATE  217 

and  then  the  Mormons  knew  that  they  had  no  alternative  except 
to  leave  the  state. 

While  the  prisoners  were  in  jail,  things  had  not  quieted  down 
in  the  Mormon  counties.  The  decisive  action  of  the  state  authori- 
ties had  given  the  local  Missourians  to  understand  that  the  law  of 
the  land  was  on  their  side,  and  when  the  militia  withdrew  they 
took  advantage  of  their  opportunity.  Mormon  property  was  not 
respected,  and  what  was  left  to  those  people  in  the  way  of  horses, 
cattle,  hogs,  and  even  household  belongings  was  taken  by  the 
bands  of  men  who  rode  at  pleasure,1  and  who  claimed  that  they 
were  only  regaining  what  the  Mormons  had  stolen  from  them. 
The  legislature  appropriated  $2000  for  the  relief  of  such 
sufferers. 

Facing  the  necessity  of  moving  entirely  out  of  the  state,  the 
Mormons,  as  they  had  reached  the  western  border  line  of  civiliza- 
tion, now  turned  their  face  eastward  to  Quincy,  Illinois,  where 
some  of  their  members  were  already  established.  Not  until  April 
20  did  the  last  of  them  leave  Far  West.  The  migration  was 
attended  with  much  suffering,  as  could  not  in  such  circumstances 
be  avoided.  The  people  of  the  counties  through  which  they  passed 
were,  however,  not  hostile,  and  Mormon  writers  have  testified  that 
they  received  invitations  to  stop  and  settle.  These  were  declined, 
and  they  pressed  on  to  the  banks  of  the  Mississippi,  where,  in 
February  and  March,  there  were  at  one  time  more  than  130 
families,  waiting  for  the  moving  ice  to  enable  them  to  cross,  many 
'of  them  without  food,  and  the  best  sheltered  depending  on  tents 
made  of  their  bedclothing.2 

What  the  total  of  the  pecuniary  losses  of  the  Mormons  in 
Missouri  was  cannot  be  accurately  estimated.  They  asserted  that 
in  Jackson  County  alone  $120,000  worth  of  their  property  was 
destroyed,  and  that  fifteen  thousand  of  their  number  fled  from  the 
state.  Smith,  in  a  statement  of  his  losses  made  after  his  arrival  in 
Illinois,  placed  them  at  $1,000,000.  In  a  memorial  presented  to 
Congress  at  this  time  the  losses  in  Jackson  County  were  placed  at 
$175,000,  and  in  the  state  of  Missouri  at  $2,000,000.  The  efforts 
of  the  Mormons  to  secure  redress  were  long  continued.  Not  only 
was  Congress  appealed  to,  but  legislatures  of  other  states  were 

1  See  M.  Arthur's  letter,  "Correspondence,  Orders,  etc.,"  p.  94. 

2  Green's  "  Facts  Relative  to  the  Expulsion." 


2l8  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

urged  to  petition  in  their  behalf.  The  Senate  committee  at  Wash- 
ington reported  that  the  matter  was  entirely  within  the  jurisdiction 
of  the  state  of  Missouri.  One  of  the  latest  appeals  was  addressed 
by  Smith  at  Nauvoo  in  December,  1843,  to  his  native  state,  Ver- 
mont, calling  on  the  Green  Mountain  boys,  not  only  to  assist  him 
in  attaining  justice  in  Missouri,  "but  also  to  humble  and  chastise 
or  abase  her  for  the  disgraces  he  has  brought  upon  constitutional 
liberty,  until  she  atones  for  her  sin." 

The  final  act  of  the  Mormon  authorities  in  Missouri  was  some- 
what dramatic.  Smith  in  his  "revelation"  of  April  8,  1838,  direct- 
ing the  building  of  a  Temple  at  Far  West,  had  (the  Lord  speaking) 
ordered  the  beginning  to  be  made  on  the  following  Fourth  of  July, 
adding,  "in  one  year  from  this  day  let  them  recommence  laying 
the  foundation  of  my  house."  The  anniversary  found  the  latest 
Missouri  Zion  deserted,  and  its  occupants  fugitives ;  but  the  com- 
mand of  the  Lord  must  be  obeyed.  Accordingly,  the  twelve 
Apostles  journeyed  secretly  to  Far  West,  arriving  there  about 
midnight  of  April  26,  1839.  A  conference  was  at  once  held,  and, 
after  transacting  some  miscellaneous  business,  including  the  expul- 
sion of  certain  seceding  members,  all  adjourned  to  the  selected  site 
of  the  Temple,  where,  after  the  singing  of  a  hymn,  the  foundation 
was  relaid  by  rolling  a  large  stone  to  one  corner.1  The  Apostles 
then  returned  to  Illinois  as  quietly  as  possible.  The  leader  of  this 
expedition  was  Brigham  Young,  who  had  succeeded  T.  B.  Marsh 
as  President  of  the  Twelve. 

Thus  ended  the  early  history  of  the  Mormon  church  in  Mis- 
souri. 

1  The  modern  post-office  name  of  Far  West  is  Kerr.  All  the  Mormon  houses  there 
have  disappeared.  Traces  of  the  foundation  of  the  Temple,  which  in  places  was  built  to 
a  height  of  three  or  four  feet,  are  still  discernible. 


BOOK    IV 

IN  ILLINOIS 

CHAPTER   I 

THE   RECEPTION   OF   THE   MORMONS 

The  state  of  Illinois,  when  the  Mormons  crossed  the  Missouri  t 
River  to  settle  in  it,  might  still  be  considered  a  pioneer  country. 
Iowa,  to  the  west  of  it,  was  a  territory,  and  only  recently  organized 
as  such.  The  population  of  the  whole  state  was  only  467,183  in  1^ 
1840,  as  compared  with  4,821,550  in  1900.  Young  as  it  was,  how- 
ever, the  state  had  had  some  severe  financial  experiences,  which 
might  have  served  as  warnings  to  the  new-comers.  A  debt  of 
more  than  $14,000,000  had  been  contracted  for  state  improvements, 
and  not  a  railroad  or  a  canal  had  been  completed.  "The  people," 
says  Ford,  "  looked  one  way  and  another  with  surprise,  and  were 
astonished  at  their  own  folly."  The  payment  of  interest  on  the 
state  debt  ceased  after  July,  1841,  and  "in  a  short  time  Illinois 
became  a  stench  in  the  nostrils  of  the  civilized  world.  .  .  .  The 
impossibility  of  selling  kept  us  from  losing  population ;  the  fear  of 
disgrace  or  high  taxes  prevented  us  from  gaining  materially."1 
The  State  Bank  and  the  Shawneetown  Bank  failed  in  1842,  and 
when  Ford  became  governor  in  that  year  he  estimated  that  the 
good  money  in  the  state  in  the  hands  of  the  people  did  not  exceed 
one  year's  interest  on  the  public  debt. 

The  lawless  conditions  in  many  parts  of  the  state  in  those  days 
can  scarcely  be  realized  now.  It  was  in  1847  that  the  Rev.  Owen 
Lovejoy  was  killed  at  Alton  in  maintaining  his  right  to  print  there 
an  abolition  newspaper.  All  over  the  state,  settlers  who  had  occu- 
pied lands  as  "  squatters  "  defended  their  claims  by  force,  and  seri- 
ous mobs  often  resulted.     Large  areas  of  military  lands  were  owned 

1  Ford's  "  History  of  Illinois,"  Chap.  VII. 
219 


220  THE   STORY   OF  THE  MORMONS 

by  non-residents,  who  were  in  very  bad  favor  with  the  actual  set- 
tlers. These  settlers  made  free  use  of  the  timber  on  such  lands, 
and  the  non-residents,  failing  to  secure  justice  at  law,  finally  hired 
preachers,  who  were  paid  by  the  sermon  to  preach  against  the  sin 
of  "hooking"  timber.1 

Bands  of  desperadoes  in  the  northern  counties  openly  defied 
the  officers  of  the  law,  and,  in  one  instance,  burned  down  the  court- 
house (in  Ogle  County  in  1 841)  in  order  to  release  some  of  their 
fellows  who  were  awaiting  trial.  One  of  these  gangs  ten  years 
earlier  had  actually  built,  in  Pope  County,  a  fort  in  which  they 
defied  the  authorities,  and  against  which  a  piece  of  artillery  had 
to  be  brought  before  it  could  be  taken.  Even  while  the  conflict 
between  the  Mormons  was  going  on,  in  1846,  there  was  vitality 
enough  in  this  old  organization,  in  Pope  and  Massac  counties,  to 
call  for  the  interposition  of  a  band  of  "  regulators,"  who  made 
many  arrests,  not  hesitating  to  employ  torture  to  secure  from  one 
prisoner  information  about  his  associates.  Governor  Ford  sent 
General  J.  T.  Davies  there,  to  try  to  effect  a  peaceable  arrange- 
ment of  the  difficulties,  but  he  failed  to  do  so,  and  the  "  regula- 
tors," who  found  the  county  officers  opposed  to  them,  drove  out  of 
the  county  the  sheriff,  the  county  clerk,  and  the  representative- 
elect  to  the  legislature.  When  the  judge  of  the  Massac  Circuit 
Court  charged  the  grand  jury  strongly  against  the  "  regulators," 
they,  with  sympathizers  from  Kentucky,  threatened  to  lynch  him, 
and  actually  marched  in  such  force  to  the  county  seat  that  the 
sheriff's  posse  surrendered,  and  the  mob  let  their  friends  out  of 
jail,  and  drowned  some  members  of  the  posse  in  the  Ohio  River. 

The  reception  and  treatment  of  the  Mormons  in  Illinois,  and 
the  success  of  the  new-comers  in  carrying  out  their  business  and 
political  schemes,  must  be  viewed  in  connection  with  these  inci- 
dents in  the  early  history  of  the  state. 

The  greeting  of  the  Mormons  in  Illinois,  in  its  practical  shape, 
had  both  a  political  and  a  business  reason.2  Party  feeling  ran  very 
high  throughout" the  country  in  those  days.  The  House  of  Repre- 
sentatives at  Washington,  after  very  great  excitement,  organized 

1  Ford's  "  History  of  Illinois,"  Chap.  VI. 

2  "The  first  great  error  committed  by  the  people  of  Hancock  County  was  in  accept- 
ing too  readily  the  Mormon  story  of  persecution.  It  was  continually  rung  in  their  ears, 
and  believed  as  often  as  asserted."  —  Gregg,  "  History  of  Hancock  County,"  p.  270. 


THE    RECEPTION   OF   THE   MORMONS  221 

early  in  December,  1839,  by  choosing  a  Whig  Speaker,  and  at  the 
same  time  the  Whig  National  Convention,  at  Harrisburg,  Pennsyl- 
vania, nominated  General  W.  H.  Harrison  for  President.  Thus  the 
expulsion  from  Missouri  occurred  on  the  eve  of  one  of  our  most 
exciting  presidential  campaigns,  and  the  Illinois  politicians  were 
quick  to  appraise  the  value  of  the  voting  strength  of  the  immigrants. 
As  a  residence  of  six  months  in  the  state  gave  a  man  the  right  to 
vote,  the  Mormon  vote  would  count  in  the  presidential  election. 

Accordingly,  we  find  that  in  February,  1839,  the  Democratic  / 
Association  of  Ouincy,  at  a  public  meeting  in  the  court-house, 
received  a  report  from  a  committee  previously  appointed,  strongly 
in  favor  of  the  refugees,  and  adopted  resolutions  condemning  the 
treatment  of  the  Mormons  by  the  people  and  officers  of  Missouri. 
The  Qaincy  Argus  declared  that,  because  of  this  treatment,  Mis- 
souri was  "  now  so  fallen  that  we  could  wish  her  star  stricken  out 
from  the  bright  constellation  of  the  Union."  In  April,  1839, 
Rigdon  wrote  to  the  "Saints  in  prison  "  that  Governor  Carlin  of 
Illinois  and  his  wife  "  enter  with  all  the  enthusiasm  of  their  nature" 
into  his  plan  to  have  the  governor  of  each  state  present  to  Con- 
gress the  unconstitutional  course  of  Missouri  toward  the  Mormons, 
with  a  view  to  federal  relief.  Governor  Lucas  of  Iowa  Territory, 
in  the  same  year  (Iowa  had  only  been  organized  as  a  territory  the 
year  before,  and  was  not  admitted  as  a  state  until  1845),  replying 
to  a  query  about  the  reception  the  Mormons  would  receive  in  his 
domain,  said  :  "  Their  religious  opinions  I  consider  have  nothing 
to  do  with  our  political  transactions.  They  are  citizens  of  the 
United  States,  and  are  entitled  to  the  same  political  rights  and 
legal  protection  that  other  citizens  are  entitled  to."  He  gave 
Rigdon  at  the  same  time  cordial  letters  of  introduction  to  President 
Van  Buren  and  Governor  Shannon  of  Ohio,  and  Rigdon  received 
a  similar  letter  to  the  President,  recommending  him  "as  a  man  of 
piety  and  a  valuable  citizen,"  signed  by  Governor  Carlin,  United 
States  Senator  Young,  County  Clerk  Wren,  and  leading  business 
men  of  Quincy.  Thus  began  that  recognition  of  the  Mormons  as  / 
a  political  power  in  Illinois  which  led  to  concessions  to  them  that 
had  so  much  to  do  with  finally  driving  them  into  the  wilderness. 

The  business  reason  for  the  welcome  of  the  Mormons  in  I  Hi-  ! 
nois  and  Iowa  was  the  natural  ambition  to  secure  an  increase  of 
population.     In  all  of  Hancock  County  there  were  in   1830  only 


222  THE    STORY    OF   THE   MORMONS 

483  inhabitants  as  compared  with  32,215  in  1900.  Along  with 
'"this  public  view  of  the  matter  was  a  private  one.  A  Dr.  Isaac 
Galland  owned  (or  claimed  title  to)  a  large  tract  of  land  on  both  sides 
of  the  border  line  between  Illinois  and  Iowa,  that  in  Iowa  being 
included  in  what  was  known  as  "the  half-breed  tract,"  an  area  of 
some  119,000  acres  which,  by  a  treaty  between  the  United  States 
government  and  the  Sacs  and  Foxes,  was  reserved  to  descendants 
of  Indian  women  of  those  tribes  by  white  fathers,  and  the  title  to 
much  of  which  was  in  dispute.  As  soon  as  the  Mormons  began 
to  cross  into  Illinois,  Galland  approached  them  with  an  offer  of 
about  20,000  acres  between  the  Mississippi  and  Des  Moines  rivers 
at  $2  per  acre,  to  be  paid  in  twenty  annual  instalments,  without 
interest.  A  meeting  of  the  refugees  was  held  in  Ouincy  in  Febru- 
ary, 1839,  to  consider  this  offer,  but  the  vote  was  against  it.  The 
failure  of  the  efforts  in  Ohio  and  Missouri  to  establish  the  Mor- 
mons as  a  distinct  community  had  made  many  of  Smith's  follow- 
ers sceptical  about  the  success  of  any  new  scheme  with  this  end  in 
view,  and  at  this  conference  several  members,  including  so  influen- 
tial a  man  as  Bishop  Partridge,  openly  expressed  their  doubt  about 
the  wisdom  of  another  gathering  of  the  Saints.  Galland,  however, 
pursued  the  subject  in  a  letter  to  D.  W.  Rodgers,  inviting  Rigdon 
and  others  to  inspect  the  tract  with  him,  and  assuring  the  Mormons 
of  his  sympathy  in  their  sufferings,  and  "  deep  solicitude  for  your 
future  triumphant  conquest  over  every  enemy."  Rigdon,  Partridge, 
and  others  accepted  Galland's  invitation,  but  reported  against  pur- 
chasing his  land,  and  the  refugees  began  scattering  over  the  coun- 
try around  Quincy. 


CHAPTER    II 
THE   SETTLEMENT  OF   NAUVOO 

Smith's  leadership  was  now  to  have  another  illustration. 
Others  might  be  discouraged  by  past  persecutions  and  business 
failures,  and  be  ready  to  abandon  the  great  scheme  which  the 
prophet  had  so  often  laid  before  them  in  the  language  of  "  revela- 
tion "  ;  but  it  was  no  part  of  Smith's  character  to  abandon  that 
scheme,  and  remain  simply  an  object  of  lessened  respect,  with  a 
scattered  congregation.  He  had  been  kept  advised  of  Galland's 
proposal,  and,  two  days  after  his  arrival  in  Quincy,  we  find  him,  on 
April  24,  presiding  at  a  church  council  which  voted  to  instruct  him 
with  two  associates  to  visit  Iowa  and  select  there  a  location  for  a 
church  settlement,  and  which  advised  all  the  brethren  who  could 
do  so  to  move  to  the  town  of  Commerce,  Illinois.  Thus  were  the 
doubters  defeated,  and  the  proposal  to  scatter  the  flock  brought  to 
a  sudden  end.  Smith  and  his  two  associates  set  out  at  once  to 
make  their  inspection. 

The  town_of  Commerce  had  been  laid  out  (on  paper)  in  1834 
by  two  Eastern  owners  of  the  property,  A.  White  and  J.  B.  Teas, 
and  adjoining  its  northern  border  H.  R.  Hotchkiss  of  New  Haven, 
Connecticut,  had  mapped  out  Commerce  City.  Neither  enterprise 
had  proved  a  success,  and  when  the  Mormon  agents  arrived  there 
the  place  had  scarcely  attained  the  dignity  of  a  settlement,  the 
only  buildings  being  one  storehouse,  two  frame  dwellings  and  two 
blockhouses.  The  Mormon  agents,  on  May  1,  bought  two  farms 
there,  one  for  $5000  and  one  for  $9000  (known  afterward  as  the 
White  purchase),  and  on  August  9  they  bought  of  Hotchkiss  five 
hundred  acres  for  the  sum  of  $53,500.  Bishop  Knight,  for  the 
church,  soon  afterward  purchased  part  of  the  town  of  Keokuk, 
Iowa,  a  town  called  Nashville  six  miles  above,  a  part  of  the  town 
of  Montrose,  four  miles  above  Nashville,  and  thirty  thousand  acres 

223 


224  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

in  the  "  half-breed  tract,"  which  included  Galland's  original  offer, 
and  ten  thousand  acres  additional. 

Thus  was  Smith  prepared  to  make  another  attempt  to  estab- 
lish his  followers  in  a  permanent  abiding-place.  But  how,  it  may 
be  asked,  could  the  prophet  reconcile  this  abandonment  of  the 
Missouri  Zion  and  this  new  site  for  a  church  settlement  with  pre- 
vious revelations?  By  further  "revelation,"  of  course.  Such  a 
mouthpiece  of  God  can  always  enlighten  his  followers  provided  he 
can  find  speech,  and  Smith  was  not  slow  of  utterance.  While  in 
jail  in  Liberty  he  had  advised  a  committee  which  was  sent  to  him 
from  Illinois  to  sell  all  the  lands  in  Missouri,  and  in  a  letter  to  the 
Saints,  written  whjle  a  prisoner,  he  spoke  favorably  of  Galland's 
offer,  saying,  "  The  Saints  ought  to  lay  hold  of  every  door  that 
shall  seem  to  be  opened  unto  them  to  obtain  foothold  on  the 
earth."  In  order  to  make  perfectly  clear  the  new  purpose  of  the 
Lord  in  regard  to  Zion  he  gave  out  a  long  "  revelation  "  (Sec.  124), 
which  is  dated  Nauvoo,  January  19,  1841,  and  which  contains  the 
following  declarations :  — 

"  Verily,  verily  I  say  unto  you,  that  when  I  give  a  commandment  to  any  of  the 
sons  of  men  to  do  a  work  under  my  name,  and  those  sons  of  men  go  with  all 
their  might  and  with  all  they  have,  to  perform  that  work  and  cease  not  their  dili- 
gence, and  their  enemies  come  upon  them  and  hinder  them  from  performing  that 
work,  behold,  it  behooveth  me  to  require  that  work  no  more  at  the  hands  of  those 
sons  of  men,  but  to  accept  their  offerings. 

"  And  the  iniquity  and  transgression  of  my  holy  laws  and  commandments  I 
will  visit  upon  the  heads  of  those  who  hindered  my  work,  unto  the  third  and 
fourth  generation,  so  long  as  they  repent  not  and  hate  me,  saith  the  Lord  God. 

"  Therefore  for  this  cause  have  I  accepted  the  offerings  of  those  whom  I 
commanded  to  build  up  a  city  and  house  unto  my  name  in  Jackson  County,  Mis- 
souri, and  were  hindered  by  their  enemies,  saith  the  Lord  your  God." 

This  announcement  seems  to  have  been  accepted  without 
question  by  the  faithful,  as  reconciling  the  failure  in  Missouri  with 
the  new  establishment  farther  east. 

The  financiering  of  the  new  land  purchases  did  credit  to  Smith's 
genius  in  that  line.  For  some  of  the  smaller  tracts  a  part  payment 
in  cash  was  made.  Hotchkiss  accepted  for  his  land  two  notes 
signed  by  Smith  and  his  brother  Hyrum  and  Rigdon,  one  paya- 
ble in  ten,  and  the  other  in  twenty  years.  Galland  took  notes, 
and,  some  time  later,  as  explained  in  a  letter  to  the  Saints  abroad, 
the  Mormon  lands  in  Missouri,  "  in  payment  for  the  whole  amount, 


THE   SETTLEMENT   OF   NAUVOO  225 

and  in  addition  to  the  first  purchase  we  have  exchanged  lands  with 
him  in  Missouri  to  the  amount  of  $80,000."  1  Galland's  title  to  the 
Iowa  tract  was  vigorously  assailed  by  Iowa  newspapers  some  years 
later.  What  cash  he  eventually  realized  from  the  transaction  does 
not  appear.2  Smith  had  influence  enough  over  him  to  secure  his 
conversion  to  the  Mormon  belief,  and  he  will  be  found  associated 
with  the  leaders  in  Nauvoo  enterprises. 

The  Hotchkiss  notes  gave  Smith  a  great  deal  of  trouble.  Not- 
withstanding the  influx  of  immigrants  to  Nauvoo  and  the  growth  of 
the  place,  which  ought  to  have  brought  in  large  profits  from  the 
sale  of  lots,  the  accrued  interest  due  to  Hotchkiss  in  two  years 
amounted  to  about  $6000.  Hotchkiss  earnestly  urged  its  pay- 
ment, and  Smith  was  in  dire  straits  to  meet  his  demands.  In  a 
correspondence  between  them,  in  1841,  Smith  told  Hotchkiss  that 
he  had  agreed  to  forego  interest  for  five  years,  and  not  to  "  force 
payment "  even  then.  Smith  assured  Hotchkiss  that  the  part  of 
the  city  bought  from  him  was  "  a  deathly  sickly  hole  "  on  which 
they  had  been  able  to  realize  nothing,  "  although,"  he  added,  with 
unblushing  affrontery  for  the  head  of  a  church,  "we  have  been 
keeping  up  appearances  and  holding  out  inducements  to  encourage 
immigration  that  we  scarcely  think  justifiable  in  consequence  of 
the  mortality  that  almost  invariably  awaits  those  who  come  from 
far  distant  parts."3  In  pursuance  of  this  same  policy  (in  a  letter 
dated  October  12,  1841),  the  Eastern  brethren  were  urged  to  trans- 
fer their  lands  there  to  Hotchkiss  in  payment  of  the  notes,  and  to 
accept  lots  in  Nauvoo  from  the  church  in  exchange. 

The  name  of  the  town  was  changed  to  Nauvoo  in  April,  1840, 
with  the  announcement  that  this  name  was  of  Hebrew  origin,  sig- 
nifying "  a  beautiful  place." 4 


1  Times  and  Seasoftf," Vol.  IT,  p.  275. 

2  "  Galland  died  a  pauper  in  Iowa."  —  "  Mormon  Portraits,"  p.  253. 

3  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XVIII,  p.  631. 

4  In  answer  to  a  query  about  this  alleged  derivation  of  the  name  of  the  city,  a  com- 
petent Hebrew  scholar  writes  to  me  :  "The  nearest  approach  to  Nauvoo  in  Hebrew  is  an 
adjective  which  would  be  transliterated  Naveh,  meaning  pleasant,  a  rather  rare  word. 
The  letter  correctly  represented  by  v  could  not  possibly  do  the  double  duty  of  uv,  nor 
could  a  of  the  Hebrew  ever  be  au  in  English,  nor  eh  of  the  Hebrew  be  00  in  English. 
Students  of  theology  at  Middletown,  Connecticut,  used  to  have  a  saying  that  that  name 
was  derived  from  Moses  by  dropping  'iddletown'  and  adding  'oses.'" 


CHAPTER   III 
THE   BUILDING   UP   OF  THE   CITY  — FOREIGN   PROSELYTING 

The  geographical  situation  of  Nauvoo  had  something  in  its 
favor.  Lying  on  the  east  bank  of  the  Mississippi,  which  is  there 
two  miles  wide,  it  had  a  water  frontage  on  three  sides,  because  of 
a  bend  in  the  stream,  and  the  land  was  somewhat  rising  back  from 
the  river.  But  its  water  front  was  the  only  thing  in  its  favor.  "  The 
place  was  literally  a  wilderness,"  says  Smith.  "The  land  was 
mostly  covered  with  trees  and  bushes,  and  much  of  it  so  wet  that 
it  was  with  the  utmost  difficulty  a  foot  man  could  get  through,  and 
totally  impossible  for  teams.  Commerce  was  so  unhealthy  very 
few  could  live  there,  but,  believing  it  might  become  a  healthy  place 
by  the  blessing  of  heaven  to  the  Saints,  and  no  more  eligible  place 
presenting  itself,  I  considered  it  wisdom  to  make  an  attempt  to 
build  up  a  city." 

Contemporary  accounts  say  that  most  of  the  refugees  from 
Missouri  suffered  from  chills  and  fevers  during  their  first  year 
in  the  new  settlement.  Smith,  in  his  autobiography,  laments  the 
mortality  among  the  settlers.  The  Rev.  Henry  Caswall,  in  his 
description  of  three  days  at  Nauvoo  in  1842,  says:  — 

"  I  was  informed  again  and  again  in  Montrose,  Iowa,  that  nearly  half  of  the 
English  who  emigrated  to  Nauvoo  in  1841  died  soon  after  their  arrival.  ...  In 
his  sermon  at  Montrose  in  May  9,  1841,  the  following  words  of  most  Christian 
consolation  were  delivered  by  the  Prophet  to  the  poor  deluded  English  :  'Many 
of  the  English  who  have  lately  come  here  have  expressed  great  disappointment 
on  their  arrival.  Such  persons  have  every  reason  to  be  satisfied  in  this  beautiful 
and  fertile  country.  If  they  choose  to  complain,  they  may ;  but  I  don't  want  to 
be  troubled  with  their  complaints.  If  they  are  not  satisfied  here,  I  have  only  this 
to  say  to  them,  "  Don't  stay  whining  about  me,  but  go  back  to  England,  and  go  to 
h 1  and  be  d d."  ' "  » 

1  "City  of  the  Mormons,"  p.  55. 
226 


THE   BUILDING  UP   OF   THE   CITY  227 

Brigham  Young,  in  after  years,  thus  spoke  of  Smith's  exhibi- 
tion of  miraculous  healing  during  the  year  after  their  arrival  in 
Illinois:  "Joseph  commenced  in  his  own  house  and  dooryard, 
commanding  the  sick,  in  the  name  of  Jesus  Christ,  to  arise  and  be 
made  whole,  and  they  were  healed  according  to  his  word.  He 
then  continued  to  travel  from  house  to  house,  healing  the  sick  as 
he  went."1  Any  attempt  to  reconcile  this  statement  by  Young 
with  the  previously  cited  testimony  about  the  mortality  of  the  place 
would  be  futile. 

The  growth  of  the  town,  however,  was  more  rapid  than  that  of 
any  of  the  former  Mormon  settlements.  The  United  States  census 
shows  that  the  population  of  Hancock  County,  Illinois,  increased 
from  483  in  1830  to  9946  in  1840.  Statements  regarding  the  popu- 
lation of  Nauvoo  during  the  Mormon  occupancy  are  conflicting  and 
often  exaggerated.  In  a  letter  to  the  elders  in  England,  printed  in 
the  Times  and  Seasons  of  January  1,  1841,  Smith  said,  "  There  are 
at  present  about  3000  inhabitants  in  Nauvoo."  The  same  periodi- 
cal, in  an  article  on  the  city,  on  December  15,  1841,  said  that  it  was 
"a  densely  populated  city  of  near  10,000  inhabitants."  A  visitor, 
describing  the  place  in  a  letter  in  the  Columbus  (Ohio)  Advocate 
of  March,  1842,  said  that  it  contained  about  7000  persons,  and  that 
the  buildings  were  small  and  much  scattered,  log  cabins  predomi- 
nating. The  Times  and  Seasons  of  October,  1842,  said,  "  It  will 
be  no  more  than  probably  correct  if  we  allow  the  city  to  contain 
between  7000  and  8000  houses,  with  a  population  of  14,000  or 
15,000,"  with  two  steam  mills  and  other  manufacturing  concerns 
in  operation.  W.  W.  Phelps  estimated  the  population  in  1844  at 
14,000,  almost  all  professed  Mormons.  The  Times  and  Seasons  in 
1845  said  that  a  census  just  taken  showed  a  population  of  11,057 
in  the  city  and  one-third  more  outside  the  city  limits. 

As  soon  as  the  Mormons  arrived,  Nauvoo  was  laid  out  in  blocks 
measuring  about  180  by  200  feet,  with  a  river  frontage  of  more 
than  three  miles.  An  English  visitor  to  the  place  in  1843  wrote  : 
"  The  city  is  of  great  dimensions,  laid  out  in  beautiful  order ;  the 
streets  are  wide  and  cross  each  other  at  right  angles,  which  will 
add  greatly  to  its  order  and  magnificence  when  finished.  The  city- 
rises  on  a  quick  incline  from  the  rolling  Mississippi,  and  as  you 
stand  near  the  Temple  you  may  gaze  on  the  picturesque  scenery 

1  "  Life  of  Brigham  Young"  (Cannon  &  Son,  publishers),  p.  32. 


228  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

round.  At  your  side  is  the  Temple,  the  wonder  of  the  world ; 
round  about  and  beneath  you  may  behold  handsome  stores,  large 
mansions,  and  fine  cottages,  interspersed  with  varied  scenery."  1 

Whatever  the  exact  population  of  the  place  may  have  been,  its 
rapid  growth  is  indisputable.  The  cause  of  this  must  be  sought, 
not  in  natural  business  reasons,  such  as  have  given  a  permanent 
increase  of  population  to  so  many  of  our  Western  cities,  but  chiefly 
in  active  and  aggressive  proselyting  work  both  in  this  country  and 
in  Europe.  This  work  was  assisted  by  the  sympathy  which  the 
treatment  of  the  Mormons  had  very  generally  secured  for  them. 
Copies  of  Mormon  Bibles  were  rare  outside  of  the  hands  of  the 
brethren,  and  the  text  of  Smith's  "  revelations  "  bearing  on  his 
property  designs  in  Missouri  was  known  to  comparatively  few  even 
in  the  church.  While  the  Nauvoo  edition  of  the  "  Doctrine  and 
Covenants  "  was  in  course  of  publication,  the  Times  and  Seasons, 
on  January  i,  1842,  said  that  it  would  be  published  in  the  spring, 
"  but,  many  of  our  readers  being  deprived  of  the  privilege  of  pe- 
rusing its  valuable  pages,  we  insert  the  first  section."  Mormon 
emissaries  took  advantage  of  this  situation  to  tell  their  story  in 
their  own  way  at  all  points  of  the  compass.  Meetings  were  held 
in  the  large  cities  of  the  Eastern  states  to  express  sympathy  with 
these  victims  of  the  opponents  of  "freedom  of  religious  opinion," 
and  to  raise  money  for  their  relief,  and  the  voice  of  the  press,  from 
the  Mississippi  to  the  Atlantic,  was,  without  a  discovered  exception, 
on  the  side  of  the  refugees. 

This  paved  the  way  for  a  vast  extension  of  that  mission  work 
which  began  with  the  trip  of  Cowdery  and  his  associates  in  1830, 
was  expanded  throughout  this  country  while  the  Saints  were  at 
Kirtland,  and  was  extended  to  foreign  lands  in  1837.  The  mis- 
sionaries sent  out  in  the  early  days  of  the  church  represented  vari- 
ous degrees  of  experience  and  qualification.  There  were  among 
them  men  like  Orson  Hyde  and  Willard  Richards,  who,  although 
they  gave  up  secular  callings  on  entering  the  church,  were  close 
students  of  the  Scriptures  and  debaters  who  could  hold  their  own, 
when  it  came  to  an  interpretation  of  the  Scriptures,  before  any 
average  audience.  Many  were  sent  out  without  any  especial  equip- 
ment for  their  task.  John  D.  Lee,  describing  his  first  trip,  says : 
"  I  started  forth  an  illiterate,  inexperienced  person,  without  purse 

1  Mackay's  "The  Mormons,"  p.  128. 


THE   BUILDING   UP   OF   THE   CITY  229 

or  scrip.  I  could  hardly  quote  a  passage  of  Scripture.  Yet  I 
went  forth  to  say  to  the  world  that  I  was  a  minister  of  the  Gos- 
pel." He  was  among  the  successful  proselyters,  and  rose  to  in- 
fluence in  the  church.1  Of  the  requirement  that  the  missionaries 
should  be  beggars,  Lorenzo  Snow,  who  was  sent  out  on  a  mis- 
sion from  Kirtland  in  1837,  says,  "  It  was  a  severe  trial  to  my 
natural  feelings  of  independence  to  go  without  purse  or  scrip  — 
especially  the  purse ;  for,  from  the  time  I  was  old  enough  to  work, 
the  feeling  that '  I  paid  my  way  '  always  seemed  a  necessary  adjunct 
to  self  respect." 

Parley  P.  Pratt,  in  a  letter  to  Smith  from  New  York  in  Novem- 
ber, 1839,  describing  the  success  of  the  work  in  the  United  States, 
says,  "  You  would  now  find  churches  of  the  Saints  in  Philadel- 
phia, in  Albany,  in  Brooklyn,  in  New  York,  in  Sing  Sing,  in  Jer- 
sey, in  Pennsylvania,  on  Long  Island,  and  in  various  other  places 
all  around  us,"  and  he  speaks  of  the  "spread  of  the  work"  in 
Michigan  and  Maine. 

The  importance  of  England  as  a  field  from  which  to  draw  emi- 
grants to  the  new  settlement  was  early  recognized  at  Nauvoo,  and 
in  1840  such  lights  of  the  church  as  Brigham  Young,  Heber  C. 
Kimball,  P.  P.  Pratt,  Orson  Pratt,  John  Taylor,  Wilford  Woodruff, 
and  George  A.  ■  Smith,  of  the  Quorum  of  the  Twelve  Apostles, 
were  sent  to  cultivate  that  field.  There  they  ordained  Willard 
Richards  an  Apostle,  preached  and  labored  for  over  a  year,  estab- 
lished a  printing-office  which  turned  out  a  vast  amount  of  Mormon 
literature,  including  their  Bible  and  "  Doctrine  and  Covenants," 
and  began  the  publication  x)f  the  Millennial  Star. 

In  1840  Orson  Hyde  was  sent  on  a  mission  to  the  Jews  in  Lon- 
don, Amsterdam,  Constantinople,  and  Jerusalem,  and  the  same 
year  missionaries  were  sent  to  Australia,  Wales,  Ireland,  the  Isle 
of  Man,  and  the  East  Indies.  In  1844  a  missionary  was  sent  to  , 
the  Sandwich  Islands;  in  1849  others  were  sent  to  France,  Den- 
mark, Sweden,  Norway  and  Iceland,  Italy,  and  Switzerland ;  in 
1850  ten  more  elders  were  sent  to  the  Sandwich  Islands;  in  185 1 
four  converts  were  baptized  in  Hindostan  ;  in  1852  a  branch  of  the 
church  was  organized  at  Malta;  in  1853  three  elders  reached  the 
Cape  of  Good  Hope;  and  in  1861  two  began  work  in  Holland, 
but  with  poor  success.    We  shall  see  that  this  proselyting  labor  has 

1  For  an  account  of  his  travels  and  successes,  see  "  Mormonism  Unveiled." 


230  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

continued  with  undiminished  industry  to  the  present  day,  in  all 
parts  of  the  United  States  as  well  as  in  foreign  lands. 

England  provided  an  especially  promising  field  for  Mormon 
missionary  work.  The  great  manufacturing  towns  contained  hun- 
dreds of  people,  densely  ignorant,1  superstitious,  and  so  poor  that 
the  ownership  of  a  piece  of  land  in  their  own  country  was  practi- 
cally beyond  the  limit  of  their  ambition.  These  people  were  nat- 
urally susceptible  to  the  Mormon  teachings,  easily  imposed  upon 
by  stories  of  alleged  miracles,  and  ready  to  migrate  to  any  part  of 
the  earth  where  a  building  lot  or  a  farm  was  promised  them.  The 
letters  from  the  first  missionaries  in  England  gave  glowing  reports 
of  the  results  of  their  labors.  Thus  Wilford  Woodruff,  writing 
from  Manchester  in  1840,  said,  "The  work  has  been  so  rapid  it 
was  impossible  to  ascertain  the  exact  number  belonging  to  each 
branch,  but  the  whole  number  is  33  churches,  534  members,  75 
officers,  all  of  which  had  embraced  the  work  in  less  than  four 
months."  Lorenzo  Snow,  in  a  letter  from  London  in  April,  1841, 
said :  "  Throughout  all  England,  in  almost  every  town  and  city 
of  any  considerable  importance,  we  have  chapels  or  public  halls  in 
which  we  meet  for  public  worship.  All  over  this  vast  kingdom 
the  laws  of  Zion  are  rolling  onward  with  the  most  astonishing 
rapidity." 

The  visiting  missionaries  began  their  work  in  England  at 
Preston,  Lancashire,  in  1836  or  1837,  and  soon  secured  there  some 
five  hundred  converts.  Then  they  worked  on  each  side  of  the 
Ribble,  making  converts  in  all  the  villages,  and  gaining  over  a  few 
farm  owners  and  mechanics  of  some  means.  Their  method  was 
first  to  drop  hints  to  the  villagers  that  the  Holy  Bible  is  defective 
in  translation  and  incomplete,  and  that  the  Mormon  Bible  corrects 
all  these  defects.  Not  able  to  hold  his  own  in  any  theological 
discussion,  the  rustic  was  invited  to  a  meeting.  At  that  meeting 
the  missionary  would  announce  that  he  would  speak  simply  as 
the  Lord  directed  him,  and  he  would  then  present  the  Mormon 
view  of  their  Bible  and  prophet.  As  soon  as  converts  were  won 
over,  they  were  immersed,  at  night,  and  given  the  sacrament. 
Then  they  were  initiated  into  the  secret  "church   meeting,"    to 

1  "  It  has  been  calculated  that  there  are  in  England  and  Wales  six  million  persons 
who  can  neither  read  nor  write,  that  is  to  say,  about  one-third  of  the  population,  includ- 
ing, of  course,  infants;  but  of  all  the  children  more  than  one-half  attend  no  place  of 
public  instruction."  —  Dickens,  "  Household  Words." 


THE    BUILDING   UP   OF  THE   CITY  231 

which  only  the  faithful  were  admitted,  and  where  the  flock  were 
told  of  visions  and  "  gifts,"  and  exhorted  to  stand  firm  (along  with 
their  earthly  goods)  for  the  church,  and  warned  against  apostasy. 

One  way  in  which  the  prophetic  gift  of  the  missionaries  was 
proved  in  the  early  days  in  England  was  as  follows  :  "  Whenever 
a  candidate  was  immersed,  some  of  the  brethren  was  given  a 
letter  signed  by  Hyde  and  Kimball,  setting  forth   that  'brother 

will  not  abide  in  the  spirit  of  the  Lord,  but  will  reject  the 

truth,  and  become  the  enemy  of  the  people  of  God,  etc.,  etc'  If 
the  brother  did  not  apostatize,  this  letter  remained  unopened ;  if 
he  did,  it  was  read  as  a  striking  verification  of  prophecy."  * 

Miracles  exerted  a  most  potent  influence  among  the  people 
in  England  with  whom  the  early  missionaries  labored,  and  the 
Millennial  Star  contains  a  long  list  of  reported  successes  in  this 
line.  There  are  accounts  of  very  clumsy  tricks  that  were  at- 
tempted to  carry  out  the  deception.  Thus,  at  Newport,  Wales, 
three  Mormon  elders  announced  that  they  would  raise  a  dead 
man  to  life.  The  "corpse"  was  laid  out  and  surrounded  by 
weeping  friends,  and  the  elders  were  about  to  begin  their  incan- 
tations, when  a  doubting  Thomas  in  the  audience  attacked  the 
"  corpse  "  with  a  whip,  and  soon  had  him  fleeing  for  dear  life.2 

Thomas  Webster,  who  was  baptized  in  England  in  1837  Dy 
Orson  Hyde  and  became  an  elder,  saw  the  falsity  of  the  Mormon 
professions  through  the  failure  of  their  miracles  and  other  pre- 
tensions, and,  after  renouncing  their  faith,  published  a  pamphlet 
exposing  their  methods.  He  relates  many  of  the  declarations 
made  by  the  first  missionaries  in  Preston  to  their  ignorant  hearers. 
Hyde  declared  that  the  apostles  Peter,  James,  and  John  were  still 
alive.  He  and  Kimball  asserted  that  neither  of  them  would 
"  taste  death "  before  Christ's  second  coming.  At  one  meeting 
Kimball  predicted  that  in  ten  or  fifteen  years  the  sea  would  be 
dried  up  between  Liverpool  and  America.  "  One  of  the  most 
glaring  things  they  ever  brought  before  the  public,"  says  Webster, 
"  was  stated  in  a  letter  written  by  Orson  Hyde  to  the  brethren  in 
Preston,  saying  they  were  on  the  way  to  the  promised  land  in 
Missouri  by  hundreds,  and  the  wagons  reached  a  mile  in  length. 
They  fell  in  with  some  of  their  brethren  in  Canada,  who  told  him 

1  Caswall's  "  City  of  the  Mormons,"  appendix. 

2  Tract  by  Rev.  F.  B.  Ashley,  p.  22. 


232  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

the  Lord  had  been  raining  down  manna  in  rich  profusion,  which 
covered  from  seven  to  ten  acres  of  land.  It  was  like  wafers 
dipped  in  honey,  and  both  Saints  and  sinners  partook  of  it.  I 
was  present  in  the  pulpit  when  this  letter  was  read." 

However  ridiculous  such  methods  may  appear,  their  success  in 
Great  Britain  was  great.1  In  three  years  after  the  arrival  of  the 
first  missionaries,  the  General  Conference  reported  a  membership 
of  4019  in  England  alone;  in  1850  the  General  Conference  re- 
ported that  the  Mormons  in  England  and  Scotland  numbered 
27,863,  and  in  Wales  4342.  The  report  for  June,  185 1,  showed 
a  total  of  30,747  in  the  United  Kingdom,  and  said,  "  During  the 
last  fourteen  years  more  than  50,000  have  been  baptized  in  Eng- 
land, of  which  nearly  17,000  have  migrated  from  her  shores  to 
Zion."  In  the  years  between  1840  and  1843  it  was  estimated  that 
3758  foreign  converts  settled  in  and  around  Nauvoo.2 

The  emigration  of  Mormon  converts  from  Great  Britain  to 
the  United  States,  in  its  earlier  stages,  was  thoroughly  systemized 
by  the  church  authorities  in  this  country.  The  first  record  of  the 
movement  of  any  considerable  body  tells  of  a  company  of  about 
two  hundred  who  sailed  for  New  York  from  Liverpool  in  Aug- 
ust, 1840,  on  the  ship  North  American,  in  charge  of  two  elders. 
A  second  vessel  with  emigrants,  the  Sheffield,  sailed  from  Bristol 
to  New  York  in  February,  1841.  The  expense  of  the  trip  from 
New  York  to  Nauvoo  proved  in  excess  of  the  means  of  many  of 
these  immigrants,  some  of  whom  were  obliged  to  stop  at  Kirtland 
and  other  places  in  Ohio.  This  led  to  a  change  of  route,  by  which 
vessels  sailed  from  British  ports  direct  to  New  Orleans,  the  im- 
migrants ascending  the  Mississippi  to  Nauvoo. 

1  "There  is  no  page  of  religious  history  which  more  proudly  tells  its  story  than  that 
which  relates  this  peculiar  phase  of  Mormon  experience.  The  excitement  was  contagious, 
even  affecting  persons  in  the  higher  ranks  of  social  life,  and  the  result  was  a  grand  out- 
pouring of  spiritual  and  miraculous  healing  power  of  the  most  astonishing  description. 
Miracles  were  heard  of  everywhere,  and  numerous  competent  and  most  reliable  witnesses 
bore  testimony  to  their  genuineness."  —  "  Rocky  Mountain  Saints,"  p.  10. 

2  Two  of  the  most  intelligent  English  converts,  who  did  proselyting  work  for  the 
church  and  in  later  years  saw  their  error,  have  given  testimony  concerning  this  work  in 
Great  Britain.  John  Hyde,  Jr.,  summing  up  in  1857  the  proselyting  system,  said  :  "  Enthu- 
siasm is  the  secret  of  the  great  success  of  Mormon  proselyting;  it  is  the  universal  char- 
acteristic of  the  people  when  proselyted;  it  is  the  hidden  and  strong  cord  that  leads  them 
to  Utah,  and  the  iron  clamp  that  keeps  them  there."  —  "  Mormonism,"  p.  171. 

Stenhouse  says :  "  Mormonism  in  England,  Scotland  and  Wales  was  a  grand  triumph, 
and  was  fast  ripening  for  a  vigorous  campaign  in  Continental  Europe  "  (when  polygamy 
was  pronounced). 


THE    BUILDING   UP   OF   THE   CITY  233 

The  extent  of  this  movement  to  the  time  of  the  departure  of  the 
Saints  from  Nauvoo  is  thus  given  by  James  Linforth,  who  says  the 


figures 

are  "as 

comple 

te  and  correct 

as 

it 

is 

possible 

now  to  make 

them" 

.  1 

Year 

No 

of  Yessels 

No 

of  Emigrants 

1840 

I 

200 

1 841 

6 

1 177 

1842 

8 

1614 

1843 

5 

769 

1 

1844 

5 

644 

1845-46 

3 

346 

Total    3750 

The  Mormon  agents  in  England  would  charter  a  vessel  at  an 
English  port2  when  a  sufficient  company  had  assembled  and  an- 
nounce their  intention  to  embark.  The  emigrants  would  be  noti- 
fied of  the  date  of  sailing,  and  an  agent  would  accompany  them  all 
the  way  to  Nauvoo.  Men  with  money  were  especially  desired,  as 
were  mechanics  of  all  kinds,  since  the  one  sound  business  view  that 
seems  to  have  been  taken  by  the  leaders  at  Nauvoo  was  that  it 
would  be  necessary  to  establish  manufactures  there  if  the  people 
were  to  be  able  to  earn  a  living.  In  some  instances  the  passage 
money  was  advanced  to  the  converts. 

1  "  Route  from  Liverpool  to  Great  Salt  Lake  Valley,"  1855. 

2  For  Dickens's  description  of  one  of  these  vessels  ready  to  sail,  see  "  The  Uncom- 
mercial Traveller,"  Chap.  XXII. 


CHAPTER   IV 

THE  NAUVOO   CITY   GOVERNMENT— TEMPLE   AND   OTHER 

BUILDINGS 

A  tide  of  immigration  having  been  turned  toward  the  new- 
settlement,  the  next  thing  in  order  was  to  procure  for  the  city  a 
legal  organization.  Several  circumstances  combined  to  place  in 
the  hands  of  the  Mormon  leaders  a  scheme  of  municipal  govern- 
ment, along  with  an  extensive  plan  for  buildings,  which  gave  them 
vast  power  without  incurring  the  kind  of  financial  rocks  on  which 
they  were  wrecked  in  Ohio. 

Dr.  Galland 1  should  probably  be  considered  the  inventor  of  the 
general  scheme  adopted  at  Nauvoo.  He  was  at  that  time  a  resi- 
dent of  Cincinnati,  but  his  intercourse  with  the  Mormons  had  inter- 
ested him  in  their  beliefs,  and  some  time  in  1840  he  addressed  a 
letter-to  Elder  R.  B.  Thompson,  which  gave  the  church  leaders 
some  important  advice.2  First  warning  them  that  to  promulgate 
new  doctrinal  tenets  will  require  not  only  tact  and  energy,  but  moral 
conduct  and  industry  among  their  people,  he  confessed  that  he  had 
not  been  able  to  discover  why  their  religious  views  were  not  based 
on  truth.  "  The  project  of  establishing  extraordinary  religious  doc- 
trines being  magnificent  in  its  character,"  he  went  on  to  say,  would 
require  "preparations  commensurate  with  the  plan."  Nauvoo  be- 
ing a  suitable  rallying-place,  they  would  "  want  a  temple  that  for 
size,  proportions  and  style  shall  attract,  surprise  and  dazzle  all 
beholders "  ;  something  "  unique  externally,  and  in  the  interior 
peculiar,  imposing  and  grand."     The  "  clergymen  "  must  be  of  the 

1  "In  the  year  1834 one  Dr.  Galland  was  a  candidate  for  the  legislature  in  a  district 
composed  of  Hancock,  Adams,  and  Pike  Counties.  He  resided  in  the  county  of  Han- 
cock, and,  as  he  had  in  the  early  part  of  his  life  been  a  notorious  horse  thief  and  coun- 
terfeiter, belonging  to  the  Massac  gang,  and  was  then  no  pretender  to  integrity,  it  was 
useless  to  deny  the  charge.  In  all  his  speeches  he  freely  admitted  the  fact."  —  Ford's 
"  History  of  Illinois,"  p.  406. 

2  Times  and  Seasons,  Vol.  II,  pp.  277-278.  The  letter  is  signed  with  eight  asterisks 
Galland's  usual  signature  to  such  communications. 

234 


THE   NAUVOO   CITY   GOVERNMENT  235 

best  as  regards  mental  and  vocal  equipment,  and  there  should  be  a 
choir  such  as  "  was  never  before  organized."  A  college,  too,  would 
be  of  great  value  if  funds  for  it  could  be  collected. 

These  suggestions  were  accepted  by  Smith,  with  some  impor- 
tant additional  details,  and  they  found  place  in  the  longest  of  the 
"  revelations  "  given  out  by  him  in  Illinois  (Sec.  124),  the  one,  previ- 
ously quoted  from,  in  which  the  Lord  excused  the  failure  to  set  up 
a  Zion  in  Missouri.  There  seemed  to  be  some  hesitation  about 
giving  out  this  "  revelation."  It  is  dated  after  the  meeting  of  the 
General  Conference  at  Nauvoo  which  ordered  the  building  of  a 
church  there,  and  it  was  not  published  in  the  Times  and  Seasons 
until  the  following  June,  and  then  not  entire.  The  "revelation  " 
shows  how  little  effect  adversity  had  had  in  modifying  the  prophet's 
egotism,  his  arrogance,  or  his  aggressiveness. 

Starting  out  with,  "  Verily,  thus  saith  the  Lord  unto  you,  my 
servant  Joseph  Smith,  I  am  well  pleased  with  your  offerings  and 
acknowledgments,"  it  calls  on  him  to  make  proclamation  to  the 
kings  of  the  world,  the  President  of  the  United  States,  and  the 
governors  of  the  states  concerning  the  Lord's  will,  "  fearing  them 
not,  for  they  are  as  grass,"  and  warning  them  of  "  a  day  of  visita- 
tion if  they  reject  my  servants  and  my  testimony."  Various 
direct  commands  to  leading  members  of  the  church  follow.  Gal- 
land  here  found  himself  in  Smith's  clutches,  being  directed  to  "  put 
stock  "  into  the  boarding-house  to  be  built. 

The  principal  commands  in  this  "  revelation "  directed  the 
building  of  another  "holy  house,"  or  Temple,  and  a  boarding- 
house.  With  regard  to  the  Temple  it  was  explained  that  the 
Lord  would  show  Smith  everything  about  it,  including  its  site. 
All  the  Saints  from  afar  were  ordered  to  come  to  Nauvoo,  "  with 
all  your  gold,  and  your  silver,  and  your  precious  stones,  and  with 
all  your  antiquities,  .  .  .  and  bring  the  box  tree,  and  the  fir  tree, 
and  the  pine  tree,  together  with  all  the  precious  trees  of  the  earth, 
and  with  iron,  with  copper,  and  with  brass,  and  with  zinc,  and 
with  all  your  most  precious  things  of  the  earth." 

The  boarding-house  ordered  built  was  to  be  called  Nauvoo 
House,  and  was  to  be  "  a  house  that  strangers  may  come  from 
afar  to  lodge  therein,  ...  a  resting  place  for  the  weary  traveler, 
that  he  may  contemplate  the  glory  of  Zion."  It  was  explained 
that  a  company  must  be  formed,  the  members  of  which  should 


236  THE    STORY   OF  THE   MORMONS 

pay  not  less  than  $50  a  share  for  the  stock,  no  subscriber  to  be 
allotted  more  than  $1500  worth. 

This  "revelation"  further  announced  once  more  that  Joseph 
was  to  be  "  a  presiding  elder  over  all  my  church,  to  be  a  trans- 
lator, a  revelator,  a  seer  and  a  prophet,"  with  Sidney  Rigdon  and 
William  Law  his  counsellors,  to  constitute  with  him  the  First 
Presidency,  and  Brigham  Young  to  be  president  over  the  twelve 
travelling  council. 

Legislation  was,  of  course,  necessary  to  carry  out  the  large 
schemes  that  the  Mormon  leaders  had  in  mind ;  but  this  was 
secured  at  the  state  capital  with  a  liberality  that  now  seems 
amazing.  This  was  due  to  the  desire  of  the  politicians  of  all 
parties  to  conciliate  the  Mormon  vote,  and  to  the  good  fortune  of 
the  Mormons  in  finding  at  the  capital  a  very  practical  lobbyist 
to  engineer  their  cause.  This  was  a  Dr.  John  C.  Bennett,  a  man 
who  seems  to  have  been  without  any  moral  character,  but  who 
had  filled  positions  of  importance.  Born  in  Massachusetts  in 
1804,  he  practised  as  a  physician  in  Ohio,  and  later  in  Illinois, 
holding  a  professorship  in  Willoughby  University,  Ohio,  and 
taking  with  him  to  Illinois  testimonials  as  to  his  professional  skill. 
In  the  latter  state  he  showed  a  taste  for  military  affairs,  and  after 
being  elected  brigadier  general  of  the  Invincible  Dragoons,  he 
was  appointed  quartermaster  general  of  the  state  in  1840,  and 
held  that  position  at  the  state  capital  when  the  Mormons  applied 
to  the  legislature  for  a  charter  for  Nauvoo. 

With  his  assistance  there  was  secured  from  the  legislature  an 
act  incorporating  the  city  of  Nauvoo,  the  Nauvoo  Legion,  and  the 
University  of  the  City  "of  Nauvoo.  The  powers  granted  to  the 
city  government  thus  established  were  extraordinary.  A  City 
Council  was  authorized,  consisting  of  the  mayor,  four  aldermen, 
and  nine  councillors,  which  was  empowered  to  pass  any  ordinances, 
not  in  conflict  with  the  federal  and  state  constitutions,  which  it 
deemed  necessary  for  the  peace  and  order  of  the  city.  The 
mayor  and  aldermen  were  given  all  the  power  of  justices  of  the 
peace,  and  they  were  to  constitute  the  Municipal  Court.  The 
charter  gave  the  mayor  sole  jurisdiction  in  all  cases  arising  under 
the  city  ordinances,  with  a  right  of  appeal  to  the  Municipal  Court. 
Further  than  this,  the  charter  granted  to  the  Municipal  Court  the 
right  to  issue  writs  of  habeas  corpus  in  all  cases  arising  under  the 


THE   NAUVOO   CITY   GOVERNMENT  237 

city  ordinances.  Thirty-six  sections  were  required  to  define  the 
legislative  powers  of  the  City  Council. 

A  more  remarkable  scheme  of  independent  local  government 
could  not  have  been  devised  even  by  the  leaders  of  this  Mormon 
church,  and  the  short-sightedness  of  the  law  makers  in  consenting 
to  it  seems  nothing  short  of  marvellous.  Under  it  the  mayor,  who 
helped  to  make  the  local  laws  (as  a  member  of  the  City  Council), 
was  intrusted  with  their  enforcement,  and  he  could,  as  the  head 
of  the  Municipal  Court,  give  them  legal  interpretation.  Governor 
Ford  afterward  defined  the  system  as  "  a  government  within  a 
government ;  a  legislature  to  pass  ordinances  at  war  with  the  laws 
of  the  state ;  courts  to  execute  them  with  but  little  dependence 
upon  the  constitutional  judiciary,  and  a  military  force  at  their  own 
command."  1 

This  military  force,  called  the  Nauvoo  Legion,  the  City  Council 
was  authorized  to  organize  from  the  inhabitants  of  the  city  who 
were  subject  to  military  duty.  It  was  to  be  at  the  disposal  of  the 
mayor  in  executing  city  laws  and  ordinances,  and  of  the  governor 
of  the  state  for  the  public  defence.  When  organized,  it  embraced 
three  classes  of  troops  —  flying  artillery,  lancers,  and  riflemen.  Its 
independence  of  state  control  was  provided  for  by  a  provision  of 
law  which  allowed  it  to  be  governed  by  a  court  martial  of  its  own 
officers.  The  view  of  its  independence  taken  by  the  Mormons  may 
be  seen  in  the  following  general  order  signed  by  Smith  and  Ben- 
nett in  May,  1841,  founded  on  an  opinion  by  Judge  Stephen  A. 
Douglas  :  — 

"  The  officers  and  privates  belonging  to  the  Legion  are  exempt  from  all  mili- 
tary duty  not  required  by  the  legally  constituted  authorities  thereof;  they  are 
therefore  expressly  inhibited  from  performing  any  military  service  not  ordered 
by  the  general  officers,  or  directed  by  the  court  martial."2 

1  A  bill  repealing  this  charter  was  passed  by  the  Illinois  House  on  February  3,  1843, 
by  a  vote  of  fifty-eight  to  thirty-three,  but  failed  in  the  Senate  by  a  vote  of  sixteen  ayes 
to  seventeen  nays. 

2  Times  and  Seasons,  Vol.  II,  p.  417.  Governor  Ford  commissioned  Brigham 
Young  to  succeed  Smith  as  lieutenant  general  of  th<^  Legion  from  August  31,  1844.  To 
show  the  Mormon  idea  of  authority,  the  following  is  quoted  from  Tullidge's  "  Life  of 
Brigham  Young,"  p.  30:  "  It  is  a  singular  fact  that,  after  Washington,  Joseph  Smith  was 
the  first  man  in  America  who  held  the  rank  of  lieutenant  general,  and  that  Brigham 
Young  was  the  next.  In  reply  to  a  comment  by  the  author  upon  this  fact  Brigham 
Young  said :  '  I  was  never  much  of  a  military  man.  The  commission  has  since  been 
abrogated  by  the  state  of  Illinois;  but  if  Joseph  had  lived  when  the  [Mexican]  war 
broke  out  he  would  have  become  commander-in-chief  of  the  United  States  armies.'" 


238  THE   STORY    OF   THE   MORMONS 

In  other  words,  this  city  military  company  was  entirely  inde- 
pendent of  even  the  governor  of  the  state.  Little  wonder  that  the 
Presidency,  writing  about  the  new  law  to  the  Saints  abroad,  said, 
"  Tis  all  we  ever  claimed."  In  view  of  the  experience  of  the  Mis- 
sourians  with  the  Mormons  as  directed  by  Smith  and  Rigdon,  it 
would  be  rash  to  say  that  they  would  have  been  tolerated  as  neigh- 
bors in  Illinois  under  any  circumstances,  after  their  actual  acquain- 
tance had  been  made ;  but  if  the  state  of  Illinois  had  deliberately 
intended  to  incite  the  Mormons  to  a  reckless  assertion  of  indepen- 
dence, nothing  could  have  been  planned  that  would  have  accom- 
plished this  more  effectively  than  the  passage  of  the  charter  of 
Nauvoo. 

What  next  followed  remains  an  unexplained  incident  in  Joseph 
Smith's  career.  Instead  of  taking  the  mayoralty  himself,  he  allowed 
that  office  to  be  bestowed  upon  Bennett,  Smith  and  Rigdon  accept- 
ing places  among  the  councillors,  Bennett  having  taken  up  his 
residence  in  Nauvoo  in  September,  1840.  His  election  as  mayor 
took  place  in  February,  1841.  Bennet  was  also  chosen  major  gen- 
eral of  the  Legion  when  that  force  was  organized,  was  selected  as 
the  first  chancellor  of  the  new  university,  and  was  elected  to  the 
First  Presidency  of  the  church  in  the  following  April,  to  take  the 
place  of  Sidney  Rigdon  during  the  incapacity  of  the  latter  from 
illness.  Judge  Stephen  A.  Douglas  also  appointed  him  a  master 
in  chancery. 

Bennett  was  introduced  to  the  Mormon  church  at  large  in  a 
letter  signed  by  Smith,  Rigdon,  and  brother  Hyrum,  dated  Janu- 
ary 15,  1 84 1,  as  the  first  of  the  new  acquisitions  of  influence.  They 
stated  that  his  sympathies  with  the  Saints  were  aroused  while  they 
were  still  in  Missouri,  and  that  he  then  addressed  them  a  letter 
offering  them  his  assistance,  and  the  church  was  assured  that  "he 
is  a  man  of  enterprise,  extensive  acquirements,  and  of  independent 
mind,  and  is  calculated  to  be  a  great  blessing  to  our  community." 
When  his  appointment  as  a  master  in  chancery  was  criticised  by 
some  Illinois  newspapers,  the  Mormons  defended  him  earnestly. 
Sidney  Rigdon  (then  attorney-at-law  and  postmaster  at  Nauvoo), 
in  a  letter  dated  April  23,  1842,  said,  "  He  is  a  physician  of  great 
celebrity,  of  great  versatility  of  talent,  of  refined  education  and 
accomplished  manners ;  discharges  the  duties  of  his  respective 
offices  with  honor  to  himself  and  credit  to  the  people."     All  this 


THE  NAUVOO  CITY  GOVERNMENT  239 

becomes  of  interest  in  the  light  of  the  abuse  which  the  Mormons 
soon  after  poured  out  upon  this  man  when  he  "betrayed  "  them. 

Bennett's  inaugural  address  as  mayor  was  radical  in  tone.  He 
advised  the  Council  to  prohibit  all  dram  shops,  allowing  no  liquor 
to  be  sold  in  a  quantity  less  than  a  quart.  This  suggestion  was 
carried  out  in  a  city  ordinance.  He  condemned  the  existing  sys- 
tem of  education,  which  gave  children  merely  a  smattering  of 
everything,  and  made  "  every  boarding  school  miss  a  Plato  in  petti- 
coats, without  an  ounce  of  genuine  knowledge,"  pleading  for  edu- 
cation "  of  a  purely  practical  character."  The  Legion  he  considered 
a  matter  of  immediate  necessity,  and  he  added,  "  The  winged  war- 
rior of  the  air  perches  upon  the  pole  of  American  liberty,  and  the 
beast  that  has  the  temerity  to  ruffle  her  feathers  should  be  made  to 
feel  the  power  of  her  talons." 

Smith  was  commissioned  lieutenant  general  of  this  Legion  by 
Governor  Carlin  on  February  3,  1841,  and  he  and  Bennett  blos- 
somed out  at  once  as  gorgeous  commanders.  An  order  was  issued 
requiring  all  persons  in  the  city,  of  military  obligation,  between  the 
ages  of  eighteen  and  forty-five,  to  join  the  Legion,  and  on  the  occa- 
sion of  the  laying  of  the  corner-stone  of  the  Temple,  on  April  6, 
1841,  it  comprised  fourteen  companies.  An  army  officer  passing 
through  Nauvoo  in  September,  1842,  expressed  the  opinion  that 
the  evolutions  of  the  Legion  would  do  honor  to  any  militia  in  the 
United  States,  but  he  queried:  "Why  this  exact  discipline  of  the 
Mormon  corps  ?  Do  they  intend  to  conquer  Missouri,  Illinois, 
Mexico  ?  Before  many  years  this  Legion  will  be  twenty,  perhaps 
fifty,  thousand  strong  and  still  augmenting.  A  fearful  host,  filled 
with  religious  enthusiasm,  and  led  on  by  ambitious  and  talented 
officers,  what  may  not  be  effected  by  them  ?  Perhaps  the  subver- 
sion of  the  constitution  of  the  United  States."  1 

Contemporary  accounts  of  the  appearance  of  the  Legion  on  the 
occasion  of  the  laying  of  the  Temple  corner-stone  indicate  that  the 
display  was  a  big  one  for  a  frontier  settlement.  Smith  says  in  his 
autobiography,  "  The  appearance,  order,  and  movements  of  the 
Legion  were  chaste,  grand,  imposing."  The  Times  and  Seasons, 
in  its  report  of  the  day's  doings,  says  that  General  Smith  had  a 
staff  of  four  aides-de-camp  and  twelve  guards,  "  nearly  all  in  splen- 
did uniforms.     The  several  companies  presented  a  beautiful  and 

1Mackay's  "The  Mormons,"  p.  121. 


240  THE    STORY    OF   THE   MORMONS 

interesting  spectacle,  several  of  them  being  uniformed  and  equipped, 
while  the  rich  and  costly  dresses  of  the  officers  would  have  become  a 
Bonaparte  or  a  Washington."  Ladies  on  horseback  were  an  added 
feature  of  the  procession.  The  ceremonies  attending  the  corner- 
stone laying  attracted  the  people  from  all  the  outlying  districts, 
and  marked  an  epoch  in  the  church's  history  in  Illinois. 

The  Temple  at  Nauvoo  measured  83  by  128  feet  on  the  ground,' 
and  was  nearly  60  feet  high,  surmounted  by  a  steeple  which  was 
planned  to  be  more  than  100  feet  in  height.  The  material  was 
white  limestone,  which  was  found  underlying  the  site  of  the  city. 
The  work  of  construction  continued  throughout  the  occupation  of 
Nauvoo  by  the  Mormons,  the  laying  of  the  capstone  not  being 
accomplished  until  May  24,  1845,  and  the  dedication  taking  place 
on  May  1,  1846.  The  cost  of  the  completed  structure  was  esti- 
mated by  the  Mormons  at  _$  1,000,00c).1  Among  the  costly  features 
were  thirty  stone  pilasters,  which  cost  $3000  each. 

The  portico  of  the  Temple  was  surrounded  by  these  pilasters 
of  polished  stone,  on  the  base  of  which  was  carved  a  new  moon, 
the  capital  of  each  being  a  representation  of  the  rising  sun  coming 
from  under  a  cloud,  supported  by  two  hands  holding  a  trumpet. 
Under  the  tower  were  the  words,  in  golden  letters :  "  The  House 
of  the  Lord,  built  by  the  Church  of  Latter-Day  Saints.  Com- 
menced April  6,  1841.  Holiness  to  the  Lord."  The  baptismal 
font  measured  twelve  by  sixteen  feet,  with  a  basin  four  feet  deep. 
It  was  supported  by  twelve  oxen  "  carved  out  of  fine  plank  glued 
together,"  says  Smith,  "  and  copied  after  the  most  beautiful  five- 
year-old  steer  that  could  be  found."  From  the  basement  two 
stairways  led  to  the  main  floor,  around  the  sides  of  which  were 
small  rooms  designed  for  various  uses.  In  the  large  room  on  this 
floor  were  three  pulpits  and  a  place  for  the  choir.  The  upper  floor 
contained  a  large  hall,  and  around  this  were  twelve  smaller  rooms. 

The  erection  of  this  Temple  was  carried  on  without  incurring 
such  debts  or  entering  upon  such  money-making  schemes  as  caused 
disaster  at  Kirtland.      Labor  and  material  were  secured  by  success- 

1  "The  Temple  is  said  to  have  cost,  in  labor  and  money,  a  million  dollars.  It  may 
be  possible,  and  it  is  very  probable,  that  contributions  to  that  amount  were  made  to  it, 
but  that  it  cost  that  much  to  build  it  few  will  believe.  Half  that  sum  would  be  ample 
to  build  a  much  more  costly  edifice  to-day,  and  in  the  three  or  four  years  in  which  it  was 
being  erected,  labor  was  cheap  and  all  the  necessaries  of  life  remarkably  low."  —  Gregg's 
"  History  of  Hancock  County,"  p.  367. 


THE  NAUVOO  CITY  GOVERNMENT  241 

ful  appeals  to  the  Saints  on  the  ground  and  throughout  the  world. 
Here  the  tithing  system  inaugurated  in  Missouri  played  an  efficient 
part.  A  man  from  the  neighboring  country  who  took  produce  to 
Nauvoo  for  sale  or  barter  said,  "  In  the  committee  rooms  they  had 
almost  every  conceivable  thing,  from  all  kinds  of  implements  and 
men  and  women's  clothing,  down  to  baby  clothes  and  trinkets, 
which  had  been  deposited  by  the  owners  as  tithing  or  for  the 
benefit  of  the  Temple." 1 

Nauvoo  House,  as  planned,  was  to  have  a  frontage  of  two 
hundred  feet  and  a  depth  of  forty  feet,  and  to  be  three  stories  in  I 
height,  with  a  basement.  Its  estimated  cost  was  $ioo,ooo.2  A 
detailed  explanation  of  the  uses  of  this  house  was  thus  given  in  a 
letter  from  the  Twelve  to  the  Saints  abroad,  dated  November  15, 
1 841  :  — 

"  The  time  set  to  favor  the  Stakes  of  Zion  is  at  hand,  and  soon  the  kings  and 
the  queens,  the  princes  and  the  nobles,  the  rich  and  the  honorable  of  the  earth, 
will  come  up  hither  to  visit  the  Temple  of  our  God,  and  to  inquire  concerning 
this  strange  work ;  and  as  kings  are  to  become  nursing  fathers,  and  queens  nurs- 
ing mothers  in  the  habitation  of  the  righteous,  it  is  right  to  render  honor  to  whom 
honor  is  due ;  and  therefore  expedient  that  such,  as  well  as  the  Saints,  should 
have  a  comfortable  house  for  boarding  and  lodging  when  they  come  hither,  and 
it  is  according  to  the  revelations  that  such  a  house  should  be  built.  .  .  .  All  are 
under  equal  obligations  to  do  all  in  their  power  to  complete  the  buildings  by 
their  faith  and  their  prayers ;  with  their  thousands  and  their  mites,  their  gold 
and  their  silver,  their  copper  and  their  zinc,  their  goods  and  their  labors." 

Nauvoo  House  was  not  finished  during  the  Prophet's  life,  the 
appeals  in  its  behalf  failing  to  secure  liberal  contributions.  It  was 
completed  in  later  years,  and  used  as  a  hotel. 

Smith's  residence  in  Nauvoo  was  a  frame  building  called  the 
Mansion  House,  not  far  from  the  river  side.  It  was  opened  as  a 
hotel  on  October  3,  1843,  with  considerable  ceremony,  one  of  the 
toasts  responded  to  being  as  follows,  "  Resolved,  that  General  . 
Joseph  Smith,  whether  we  view  him  as  a  prophet  at  the  head  of 
the  church,  a  general  at  the  head  of  the  Legion,  a  mayor  at  the . 
head  of  the  City  Council,  or  a  landlord  at  the  head  of  the  table,  has 
few  equals  and  no  superiors." 

Another  church  building  was  the  Hall  of  the  Seventies,  the 
upper  story  of  which  was  used  for  the  priesthood  and  the  Council 

1  Gregg's  "  History  of  Hancock  County,"  p.  374. 

2  Times  and  Seasons,  Vol.  II,  p.  369. 


242  THE    STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

of  Fifty.  Galland's  suggestion  about  a  college  received  practical 
shape  in  the  incorporation  of  a  university,  in  whose  board  of 
regents  the  leading  men  of  the  church,  including  Galland  himself, 
found  places.  The  faculty  consisted  of  James  Keeley,  a  graduate 
of  Trinity  College,  Dublin,  as  president ;  Orson  Pratt  as  professor  of 
mathematics  and  English  literature ;  Orson  Spencer,  a  graduate  of 
Union  College  and  the  Baptist  Theological  Seminary  in  New  York, 
as  professor  of  languages ;  and  Sidney  Rigdon  as  professor  of 
church  history.     The  tuition  fee  was  $$  per  quarter. 


CHAPTER   V 

THE   MORMONS   IN  POLITICS —MISSOURI  REQUISITIONS   FOR 

SMITH 

The  Mormons  were  now  equipped  in  their  new  home  with 
large  landed  possessions,  a  capital  city  that  exhibited  a  phenom- 
enal growth,  and  a  form  of  local  government  which  made  Nauvoo 
a  little  independency  of  itself ;  their  prophet  wielding  as  much  au- 
thority and  receiving  as  much  submission  as  ever ;  a  Temple  under 
way  which  would  excel  anything  that  had  been  designed  in  Ohio 
or  Missouri,  and  a  stream  of  immigration  pouring  in  which  gave 
assurance  of  continued  numerical  increase.  What  were  the  causes 
of  the  complete  overthrow  of  this  apparent  prosperity  which  so 
speedily  followed  ?  These  causes  were  of  a  twofold  character  — 
political  and  social.  The  two  were  interwoven  in  many  ways,  but 
we  can  best  trace  them  separately. 

We  have  seen  that  a  Democratic  organization  gave  the  first 
welcome  to  the  Mormon  refugees  at  Quincy.  In  the  presidential 
campaign  of  1836  the  vote  of  Illinois  had  been  :  Democratic,  17,275, 
Whig,  14,292  ;  that  of  Hancock  County,  Democratic,  260,  Whig,  340. 
The  closeness  of  this  vote  explained  the  welcome  that  was  extended 
to  the  new-comers. 

It  does  not  appear  that  Smith  had  any  original  party  predilec- 
tions. But  he  was  not  pleased  with  questions  which  President 
Van  Buren  asked  him  when  he  was  in  Washington  (from  Novem- 
ber, 1839,  t0  February,  1840)  seeking  federal  aid  to  secure  redress 
from  Missouri,  and  he  wrote  to  the  High  Council  from  that  city, 
"  We  do  not  say  the  Saints  shall  not  vote  for  him,  but  we  do  say 
boldly  (though  it  need  not  be  published  in  the  streets  of  Nauvoo, 
neither  among  the  daughters  of  the  Gentiles),  that  we  do  not  intend 
he  shall  have  our  votes."  1 

1  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XVII,  p.  452. 
243 


244  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

On  his  return  to  Illinois  Smith  was  toadied  to  by  the  workers 
of  both  parties.  He  candidly  told  them  that  he  had  no  faith  in 
either ;  but  the  Whigs  secured  his  influence,  and,  by  an  intimation 
that  there  was  divine  authority  for  their  course,  the  Mormon  vote 
was  cast  for  Harrison,  giving  him  a  majority  of  752  in  Hancock 
County.  In  order  to  keep  the  Democrats  in  good  humor,  the 
Mormons  scratched  the  last  name  on  the  Whig  electoral  ticket 
(Abraham  Lincoln)1  and  substituted  that  of  a  Democrat.  This 
demonstration  of  their  political  weight  made  the  Mormons  an 
object  of  consideration  at  the  state  capital,  and  was  the  direct 
cause  of  the  success  of  the  petition  which  they  sent  there,  signed 
by  some  thousands  of  names,  asking  for  a  charter  for  Nauvoo.  \J 
The  representatives  of  both  parties  were  eager  to  show  them  favor. 
Bennett,  in  a  letter  to  the  Times  and  Seasons  from  Springfield, 
spoke  of  the  readiness  of  all  the  members  to  vote  for  what  the 
Mormons  wanted,  adding  that  "  Lincoln  had  the  magnanimity  to 
vote  for  our  act,  and  came  forward  after  the  final  vote  and  con- 
gratulated me  on  its  passage." 

In  the  gubernatorial  campaign  of  1841-1842  Smith  swung  the 
Mormon  vote  back  to  the  Democrats,  giving  them  a  majority  of 
more  than  one  thousand  in  the  county.  This  was  done  publicly, 
in  a  letter  addressed  "To  my  friends  in  Illinois,"2  dated  December 
20,  1 84 1,  in  which  the  prophet,  after  pointing  out  that  no  persons 
at  the  state  capital  were  more  efficient  in  securing  the  passage  of 
the  Nauvoo  charter  than  the  heads  of  the  present  Democratic 
ticket,  made  this  declaration  :  — 

"  The  partisans  in  this  county  who  expect  to  divide  the  friends  of  humanity 
and  equal  rights  will  find  themselves  mistaken.  We  care  not  a  fig  for  Whig 
or  Democrat ;  they  are  both  alike  to  us ;  but  we  shall  go  for  our  friends,  our 
tried  friends,  and  the  cause  of  human  liberty  which  is  the  cause  of  God.  .  .  . 
Snyder  and  Moore  are  known  to  be  our  friends.  .  .  .  We  will  never  be  justly 
charged  with  the  sin  of  ingratitude,  —  they  have  served  us,  and  we  will  serve 
them." 

If  Smith  had  been  a  man  possessing  any  judgment,  he  would 
have  realized  that  the  political  course  which  he  was  pursuing, 
instead  of  making  friends  in  either  party,  would  certainly  soon 

1  This  is  mentioned  in  "Joab's"  (Bennett's)  letter,  Times  and  Seasons,  Vol.  II, 
p.  267. 

8  Times  and  Seasons,  Vol.  Ill,  p.  651. 


THE   MORMONS    IN   POLITICS  245 

arraign  both  parties  against  him  and  his  followers.  The  Mormons 
announced  themselves  distinctly  to  be  a  church,  and  they  were 
now  exhibiting  themselves  as  a  religious  body  already  numerically 
strong  and  increasing  in  numbers,  which  stood  ready  to  obey  the 
political  mandate  of  one  man,  or  at  least  of  one  controlling  authority. 
The  natural  consequence  of  this  soon  manifested  itself. 

A  congressional  and  a  county  election  were  approaching,  and  a 
mass  meeting,  made  up  of  both  Whigs  and  Democrats  of  Hancock 
County,  was  held  to  place  in  the  field  a  non-Mormon  county  ticket. 
The  fusion  was  not  accomplished  without  heart-burnings  on  the 
part  of  some  unsuccessful  aspirants  for  nominations.  A  few  of 
these  went  over  to  Smith,  and  the  election  resulted  in  the  success 
of  the  state  Democratic  and  the  Mormon  local  ticket,  legislative 
and  county,  Smith's  brother  William  being  elected  to  the  House. 
It  is  easy  to  realize  that  this  victory  did  not  lessen  Smith's  aggres- 
sive egotism. 

Some  important  matters  were  involved  in  the  next  political 
contest,  the  congressional  election  of  August,  1843.  The  Whigs 
nominated  Cyrus  Walker,  a  lawyer  of  reputation  living  in  McDon- 
ough  County,  and  the  Democrats  J.  P.  Hoge,  also  a  lawyer,  but  a 
weaker  candidate  at  the  polls.  Every  one  conceded  that  Smith's 
dictum  would  decide  the  contest. 

On  May  6,  1842,  Governor  Boggs  of  Missouri,  while  sitting 
near  a  window  in  his  house  in  Independence,  was  fired  at,  and 
wounded  so  severely  that  his  recovery  was  for  some  days  in  doubt. 
The  crime  was  naturally  charged  to  his  Mormon  enemies,1  and 
was  finally  narrowed  down  to  O.  P.  Rockwell,2  a  Mormon  living 

1  The  hatred  felt  toward  Governor  Boggs  by  the  Mormon  leaders  was  not  concealed. 
Thus,  an  editorial  in  the  Times  and  Seasons  of  January  1,  1841,  headed  "  Lilburn  W. 
Boggs,"  began,  "The  thing  whose  name  stands  at  the  head  of  this  article,"  etc.  Re- 
ferring to  the  ending  of  his  term  of  office,  the  article  said,  "  Lilburn  has  gone  down  to 
the  dark  and  dreary  abode  of  his  brother  and  prototype,  Nero,  there  to  associate  with 
kindred  spirits  and  partake  of  the  dainties  of  his  father's,  the  devil's,  table." 

Bennett  afterward  stated  that  he  heard  Joseph  Smith  say,  on  July  10,  1842,  that 
Governor  Boggs,  "  the  exterminator,  should  be  exterminated,"  and  that  the  Destroying 
Angels  (Danites)  should  do  it;  also  that  in  the  spring  of  that  year  he  heard  Smith,  at  a 
meeting  of  Danites,  offer  to  pay  any  man  $500  who  would  secretly  assassinate  the  gov- 
ernor. Bennett's  statement  is  only  cited  for  what  it  may  be  worth;  that  some  Mormon 
fired  the  shot  is  within  the  limit  of  strict  probability. 

2  Rockwell,  who,  in  his  latter  days,  was  employed  by  General  Connor  to  guard  stock 
in  California,  told  the  general  that  he  fired  the  shot  at  Governor  Boggs,  and  was  sorry  it 
did  not  kill  him.  —  "  Mormon  Portraits,"  p.  255. 


246  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

in  Nauvoo,  as  the  agent,  and  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.,  as  the  instigator. 
Indictments  were  found  against  both  of  them  in  Missouri,  and  a 
requisition  for  Smith's  surrender  was  made  by  the  governor  of 
that  state  on  the  governor  of  Illinois.  Smith  was  arrested  under 
the  governor's  warrant.  Now  came  an  illustration  of  the  value  to 
him  of  the  form  of  government  provided  by  the  Nauvoo  charter. 
Taken  before  his  own  municipal  court,  he  was  released  at  once 
on  a  writ  of  habeas  corpus.  This  assumption  of  power  by  a  local 
court  aroused  the  indignation  of  non-Mormons  throughout  the 
state.  Governor  Carlin  characterized  it  somewhat  later,  in  a 
letter  to  Smith's  wife,  as  "  most  absurd  and  ridiculous ;  to  attempt 
to  exercise  it  is  a  gross  usurpation  of  power  that  cannot  be 
tolerated."  1 

Notwithstanding  his  release,  Smith  thought  it  best  to  remain 
in  hiding  for  some  time  to  escape  another  arrest,  for  which  the 
governor  ordered  a  reward  of  $200.  About  the  middle  of  August 
his  associates  in  Nauvoo  concluded  that  the  outlook  for  him  was 
so  bad,  notwithstanding  the  protection  which  his  city  court  was 
ready  to  afford,  that  it  might  be  best  for  him  to  flee  to  the  pine 
woods  of  the  North  country.  Smith  incorporates  in  his  autobiog- 
raphy a  long  letter  which  he  wrote  to  his  wife  at  this  time,2  giving 
her  directions  about  this  flight  if  it  should  become  necessary. 
Their  goods  were  to  be  loaded  on  a  boat  manned  by  twenty  of 
the  best  men  who  could  be  selected,  and  who  would  meet  them 
at  Prairie  du  Chien :  "  And  from  thence  we  will  wend  our  way 
like  larks  up  the  Mississippi,  until  the  towering  mountains  and 
rocks  shall  remind  us  of  the  places  of  our  nativity,  and  shall  look 
like  safety  and  home ;  and  there  we  will  bid  defiance  to  Carlin, 
Boggs,  Bennett,  and  all  their  whorish  whores  and  motley  clan, 
that  follow  in  their  wake,  Missouri  not  excepted,  and  until  the 
damnation  of  Hell  rolls  upon  them  by  the  voice  and  dread 
thunders  and  trump  of  the  eternal  God." 

In  October  Rigdon  obtained  from  Justin  Butterfield,  United 
States  attorney  for  Illinois,  an  opinion  that  Smith  could  not  be 
held  on  a  Missouri  requisition  for  a  crime  committed  in  that  state 
when  he  was  in  Illinois.  In  December,  1842,  Smith  was  placed 
under  arrest  and  taken  before  the  United  States  District  Court  at 
Springfield,    Illinois,    under   a   writ   of   habeas   corpus   issued   by 

1  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XX,  p.  23.  2  Ibid.,  pp.  693-695. 


THE   MORMONS   IN   POLITICS  247 

Judge  Roger  B.  Taney  of  the  State  Supreme  Court.  Butterfield, 
as  his  counsel,  secured  his  discharge  by  Judge  Pope  (a  Whig)  who 
held  that  Smith  was  not  a  fugitive  from  Missouri. 

While  these  proceedings  were  pending,  the  Nauvoo  City 
Council  (Smith  was  then  mayor),  passed  two  ordinances  in  re- 
gard to  the  habeas  corpus  powers  of  the  Municipal  Court,  one 
giving  that  court  jurisdiction  in  any  case  where  a  person  "shall 
be  or  stand  committed  or  detained  for  any  criminal,  or  supposed 
criminal,  matter." 1  This  was  intended  to  make  Smith  secure 
from  the  clutches  of  any  Missouri  officer  so  long  as  he  was  in  his 
own  city. 

But  Smith's  enemy,  General  Bennett  (who  before  this  date 
had  been  cast  out  of  the  fold),  was  now  very  active,  and  through 
his  efforts  another  indictment  against  Smith  on  the  old  charges 
of  treason,  murder,  etc.,  was  found  in  Missouri,  in  June,  1843, 
and  under  it  another  demand  was  made  on  the  governor  of 
Illinois  for  Smith's  extradition.  Governor  Ford,  a  Democrat, 
who  had  succeeded  Carlin,  issued  a  warrant  on  June  17,  1843, 
and  it  was  served  on  Smith  while  he  was  visiting  his  wife's  sister 
in  Lee  County,  Illinois.  An  attempt  to  start  with  him  at  once 
for  Missouri  was  prevented  by  his  Mormon  friends,  who  rallied 
in  considerable  numbers  to  his  aid.  Smith  secured  counsel,  who 
began  proceedings  against  the  Missouri  agent  and  obtained  a 
writ  in  Smith's  behalf  returnable,  the  account  in  the  Times  and 
Seasons  says,  before  the  nearest  competent  tribunal,  which  "it 
was  ascertained  was  at  Nauvoo"  —  Smith's  own  Municipal  Court. 
The  prophet  had  a  sort  of  triumphal  entry  into  Nauvoo,  and  the 
question  of  the  jurisdiction  of  the  Municipal  Court  in  his  case 
came  up  at  once.  Both  of  the  candidates  for  Congress,  Walker 
(who  was  employed  as  his  counsel)  and  Hoge,  gave  opinions  in 
favor  of  such  jurisdiction,  and,  after  a  three  hours'  plea  by  Walker, 
the  court  ordered  Smith's  release.  Smith  addressed  the  people 
of  Nauvoo  in  the  grove  after  his  return.  From  the  report  of  his 
remarks  in  the  Journal  of  Discourses  (Vol.  II,  p.  163)  the  follow- 
ing is  taken :  — 

u  Before  I  will  bear  this  unhallowed  persecution  any  longer,  before  I  will  be 
dragged  away  again  among  my  enemies  for  trial,  I  will  spill  the  last  drop  of 

1  For  text  of  these  ordinances,  see  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XX,  p.  165. 


248  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

blood  in  my  veins,  and  will  see  all  my  enemies  in  hell.  .  .  .  Deny  me  the  writ 
of  habeas  corpus,  and  I  will  fight  with  gun,  sword,  cannon,  whirlwind,  thunder, 
until  they  are  used  up  like  the  Kilkenny  cats.  ...  If  these  [charter]  powers  are 
dangerous,  then  the  constitutions  of  the  United  States  and  of  this  state  are  dan- 
gerous. If  the  Legislature  has  granted  Nauvoo  the  right  of  determining  cases  of 
habeas  corpus,  it  is  no  more  than  they  ought  to  have  done,  or  more  than  our 
fathers  fought  for." 

Smith  expressed  his  gratitude  to  Walker  for  what  the  latter  had 
accomplished  in  his  behalf,  and  the  Whig  candidate  now  had  no 
doubt  that  the  Mormon  vote  was  his. 

But  the  Missouri  agent,  indignant  that  a  governor's  writ  should 
be  set  aside  by  a  city  court,  hurried  to  Springfield  and  demanded 
that  Governor  Ford  should  call  out  enough  state  militia  to  secure 
Smith's  arrest  and  delivery  at  the  Missouri  boundary.  The  gov- 
ernor, who  was  not  a  man  of  the  firmest  purpose,  had  no  intention 
of  being  mixed  up  in  the  pending  congressional  fight  and  struggle 
for  the  Mormon  vote ;  so  he  asked  for  delay  and  finally  decided 
not  to  call  out  any  troops. 

The  Hancock  County  Democrats  were  quick  to  see  an  oppor- 
tunity in  this  situation,  and  they  sent  to  Springfield  a  man  named 
Backenstos  (who  took  an  active  part  in  the  violent  scenes  con- 
nected with  the  subsequent  history  of  the  Mormons  in  the  state) 
to  ascertain  for  the  Mormons  just  what  the  governor's  intentions 
were.  Backenstos  reported  that  the  prophet  need  have  no  fear  of 
the  Democratic  governor  so  long  as  the  Mormons  voted  the  Demo- 
cratic ticket.1 

When  this  news  was  brought  back  to  Nauvoo,  a  few  days 
before  the  election,  a  mass  meeting  of  the  Mormons  was  called, 
and  Hyrum  Smith  (then  Patriarch,  succeeding  the  prophet's  father, 
who  was  dead)  announced  the  receipt  of  a  "  revelation  "  directing 
the  Mormons  to  vote  for  Hoge.  William  Law,  an  influential  busi- 
ness man  in  the  Mormon  circle,  immediately  denied  the  existence 
of  any  such  "  revelation."  The  prophet  alone  could  decide  the 
matter.  He  was  brought  in  and  made  a  statement  to  the  effect 
that  he  himself  proposed  to  vote  for  Walker ;  that  he  considered 
it  a  "  mean  business "  to  influence  any  man's  vote  by  dictation, 
and  that  he  had  no  great  faith  in  revelations  about  elections  ;  "  but 

1  Governor  Ford,  in  his  "  History  of  Illinois,"  says  that  such  a  pledge  was  given  by 
a  prominent  Democrat,  but  without  his  own  knowledge. 


THE   MORMONS   IN   POLITICS 


249 


brother  Hyrum  was  a  man  of  truth  ;  he  had  known  brother  Hyrum 
intimately  ever  since  he  was  a  boy,  and  he  had  never  known  him 
to  tell  a  lie.  If  brother  Hyrum  said  he  had  received  such  a  reve- 
lation, he  had  no  doubt  it  was  a  fact.  When  the  Lord  speaks,  let 
all  the  earth  be  silent."  1 

The  election  resulted  in  the  choice  of  Hoge  by  a  majority  of 
455! 

1  Ford's  "  History  of  Illinois,"  p.  318. 


CHAPTER  VI 

SMITH   A  CANDIDATE   FOR   PRESIDENT   OF  THE  UNITED 

STATES 

Smith's  latest  triumph  over  his  Missouri  enemies,  with  the  feel- 
ing that  he  had  the  governor  of  his  state  back  of  him,  increased 
his  own  and  his  followers'  audacity.  The  Nauvoo  Council  con- 
tinued to  pass  ordinances  to  protect  its  inhabitants  from  outside 
legal  processes,  civil  and  criminal.  One  of  these  provided  that  no 
writ  issued  outside  of  Nauvoo  for  the  arrest  of  a  person  in  that 
city  should  be  executed  until  it  had  received  the  mayor's  approval, 
any  one  violating  this  ordinance  to  be  liable  to  imprisonment  for 
life,  with  no  power  of  pardon  in  the  governor  without  the  mayor's 
consent !  The  acquittal  of  O.  P.  Rockwell  on  the  charge  of  the 
attempted  assassination  of  Governor  Boggs  caused  great  delight 
among  the  Mormons,  and  their  organ  declared  on  January  I,  1844, 
that  "  throughout  the  whole  region  of  country  around  us  those 
bitter  and  acrimonious  feelings,  which  have  so  long  been  engen- 
dered by  many,  are  dying  away." 

Smith's  political  ideas  now  began  to  broaden.  "  Who  shall  be 
our  next  President  ? "  was  the  title  of  an  editorial  in  the  Times  and 
Seasons  of  October  1,  1843,  which  urged  the  selection  of  a  man 
who  would  be  most  likely  to  give  the  Mormons  help  in  securing 
redress  for  their  grievances. 

The  next  month  Smith  addressed  a  letter  to  Henry  Clay  and 
John  C.  Calhoun,  who  were  the  leading  candidates  for  the  presi- 
dential nomination,  citing  the  Mormons'  losses  and  sufferings  in 
Missouri,  and  their  failure  to  obtain  redress  in  the  courts  or  from 
Congress,  and  asking,  "  What  will  be  your  rule  of  action  relative 
to  us  as  a  people  should  fortune  favor  your  ascendancy  to  the 
chief  magistracy?"  Clay  replied  that,  if  nominated,  he  could 
"enter  into  no -engagements,  make  no  promises,  give  no  pledges 
to  any  particular  portion  of  the  people  of  the  United  States," 
adding,    "  If  I  ever  enter  into  that  high  office,  I  must  go  into  it 

250 


SMITH   A  CANDIDATE    FOR    PRESIDENT  25 1 

free  and  unfettered,  with  no  guarantees  but  such  as  are  to  be 
drawn  from  my  whole  life,  character  and  conduct."  He  closed 
with  an  expression  of  sympathy  with  the  Mormons  "  in  their  suf- 
ferings under  injustice."  Calhoun  replied  that,  if  elected  Presi- 
dent, he  would  try  to  administer  the  government  according  to  the 
constitution  and  the  laws,  and  that,  as  these  made  no  distinction 
between  citizens  of  different  religious  creeds,  he  should  make  none. 
He  repeated  an  opinion  which  he  had  given  Smith  in  Washington 
that  the  Mormon  case  against  the  state  of  Missouri  did  not  come 
within  the  jurisdiction  of  the  federal  government. 

These  replies  excited  Smith  to  wrath  and  he  answered  them  at 
length,  and  in  language  characteristic  of  himself.  A  single  quota- 
tion from  his  letter  to  Clay  (dated  May  13,  1844)  will  suffice  :  — 

"  In  your  answer  to  my  question,  last  fall,  that  peculiar  trait  of  the  modern 
politician,  declaring  '  if  you  ever  enter  into  that  high  office,  you  must  go  into  it 
unfettered,  with  no  guarantees  but  such  as  are  to  be  drawn  from  your  whole  life, 
character  and  conduct,1  so  much  resembles  a  lottery  vender's  sign,  with  the  god- 
dess of  good  luck  sitting  on  the  car  of  fortune,  astraddle  of  the  horn  of  plenty, 
and  driving  the  merry  steeds  of  beatitude,  without  reins  or  bridle,  that  I  cannot 
help  exclaiming,  '  O,  frail  man,  what  have  you  done  that  will  exalt  you  ?  Can 
anything  be  drawn  from  your  life,  character  or  conduct  that  is  worthy  of  being 
held  up  to  the  gaze  of  this  nation  as  a  model  of  virtue,  character  and  wisdom  / ' 
.  .  .  Your  'whole  life,  character  and  conduct1  have  been  spotted  with  deeds  that 
causes  a  blush  upon  the  face  of  a  virtuous  patriot ;  so  you  must  be  contented 
with  your  lot,  while  crime,  cowardice,  cupidity  or  low  cunning  have  handed  you 
down  from  the  high  tower  of  a  statesman  to  the  black  hole  of  a  gambler.  .  .  . 
Crape  the  heavens  with  weeds  of  woe ;  gird  the  earth  with  sackcloth,  and  let  hell 
mutter  one  melody  in  commemoration  of  fallen  splendor  !  For  the  glory  of 
America  has  departed,  and  God  will  set  a  flaming  sword  to  guard  the  tree  of 
liberty,  while  such  mint-tithing  Herods  as  Van  Buren,  Boggs,  Benton,  Calhoun, 
and  Clay  are  thrust  out  of  the  realms  of  virtue  as  fit  subjects  for  the  kingdom  of 
fallen  greatness  —  vox  reprobi,  vox  DiaboliP 

Calhoun  was  admonished  to  read  the  eighth  section  of  article 
one  of  the  federal  constitution,  after  which  "  God,  who  cooled  the 
heat  of  a  Nebuchadnezzar's  furnace,  or  shut  the  mouths  of  lions 
for  the  honor  of  a  Daniel,  will  raise  your  mind  above  the  narrow 
notion  that  the  general  government  has  no  power,  to  the  sublime 
idea  that  Congress,  with  the  President  as  executor,  is  as  almighty 
in  its  sphere  as  Jehovah  is  in  his."  2 

1  For  this  correspondence  in  full,  see  Times  and  Seasons,  January  I  and  June  I, 
1844,  or  Mackay's  "The  Mormons,"  p.  143. 


252  THE    STORY    OF    THE    MORMONS 

Smith's  next  step  was  to  have  Judge  Phelps  read  to  a  public 
meeting  in  Nauvoo  on  February  7,  1844,  a  very  long  address  by 
the  prophet,  setting  forth  his  views  on  national  politics.1  He 
declared  that  "  no  honest  man  can  doubt  for  a  moment  but  the 
glory  of  American  liberty  is  on  the  wane,  and  that  calamity  and 
confusion  will  sooner  or  later  destroy  the  peace  of  the  people," 
while  "  the  motto  hangs  on  the  nation's  escutcheon,  '  every  man 
has  his  price.' " 

Smith  proposed  an  abundance  of  remedies  for  these  evils : 
Reduce  the  members  of  Congress  at  least  one-half ;  pay  them  $2 
a  day  and  board ;  petition  the  legislature  to  pardon  every  convict, 
and  make  the  punishment  for  any  felony  working  on  the  roads  or 
some  other  place  where  the  culprit  can  be  taught  wisdom  and 
virtue,  murder  alone  to  be  cause  for  confinement  or  death  ;  petition 
for  the  abolition  of  slavery  by  the  year  1850,  the  slaves  to  be  paid 
for  out  of  the  surplus  from  the  sale  of  public  lands,  and  the  money 
saved  by  reducing  the  pay  of  Congress  ;  establish  a  national  bank, 
with  branches  in  every  state  and  territory,  "  whose  officers  shall 
be  elected  yearly  by  the  people,  with  wages  of  $2  a  day  for  ser- 
vices," the  currency  to  be  limited  to  "  the  amount  of  capital  stock 
in  her  vaults,  and  interest  "  ;  "  and  the  bills  shall  be  par  throughout 
the  nation,  which  will  mercifully  cure  that  fatal  disorder  known  in 
cities  as  brokery,  and  leave  the  people's  money  in  their  own  pock- 
ets " ;  give  the  President  full  power  to  send  an  army  to  suppress 
mobs ;  "  send  every  lawyer,  as  soon  as  he  repents  and  obeys  the 
ordinances  of  heaven,  to  preach  the  Gospel  to  the  destitute,  without 
purse  or  scrip";  "spread  the  federal  jurisdiction  to  the  west  sea, 
when  the  red  men  give  their  consent "  ;  and  give  the  right  hand 
of  fellowship  to  Texas,  Canada,  and  Mexico.  He  closed  with  this 
declaration  :  "  I  would,  as  the  universal  friend  of  man,  open  the 
prisons,  open  the  eyes,  open  the  ears,  and  open  the  hearts  of  all 
people  to  behold  and  enjoy  freedom,  unadulterated  freedom;  and 
God,  who  once  cleansed  the  violence  of  the  earth  with  a  flood, 
whose  Son  laid  down  his  life  for  the  salvation  of  all  his  father 
gave  him  out  of  the  world,  and  who  has  promised  that  he  will  come 
and  purify  the  world  again  with  fire  in  the  last  days,  should  be 
supplicated  by  me  for  the  good  of  all  people.  With  the  highest 
esteem,  I  am  a  friend  of  virtue  and  of  the  people." 

1  For  its  text,  see  Times  and  Seasons,  May  15, 1844,  or  Mackay's  "The  Mormons,"  p.  133. 


SMITH   A   CANDIDATE   FOR   PRESIDENT  253 

It  seems  almost  incomprehensible  that  the  promulgator  of 
such  political  views  should  have  taken  himself  seriously.  But 
Smith  was  in  deadly  earnest,  and  not  only  was  he  satisfied  of  his 
political  power,  but,  in  the  church  conference  of  1844,  he  declared, 
"  I  feel  that  I  am  in  more  immediate  communication  with  God, 
and  on  a  better  footing  with  Him,  than  I  have  ever  been  in 
my  life." 

The  announcement  of  Smith's  political  "  principles  "  was  fol- 
lowed immediately  by  an  article  in  the  Times  and  Seasons,  which 
answered  the  question,  "  Whom  shall  the  Mormons  support  for 
President  ?  "  with  the  reply,  "  General  Joseph  Smith.  A  man  of 
sterling  worth  and  integrity,  and  of  enlarged  views ;  a  man  who 
has  raised  himself  from  the  humblest  walks  in  life  to  stand  at  the 
head  of  a  large,  intelligent,  respectable,  and  increasing  society  ;  .  .  . 
and  whose  experience  has  rendered  him  every  way  adequate  to 
the  onerous  duty."  The  formal  announcement  that  Smith  was 
the  Mormon  candidate  was  made  in  the  Times  and  Seasons  of 
February  15,  1844,  and  the  ticket  — 

FOR   PRESIDENT, 
GENERAL   JOSEPH   SMITH, 

Nauvoo,  Illinois. 

was  kept  at  the  head  of  its  editorial  page  from  March  1,  until  his 
death. 

A  weekly  newspaper  called  the  Wasp,  issued  at  Nauvoo  under 
Mormon  editorship,  had  been  succeeded  by  a  larger  one  called 
the  Neighbor,  edited  by  John  Taylor  (afterward  President  of  the 
church),  who  also  had  charge  of  the  Times  and  Seasons.  The 
Neighbor  likewise  placed  Smith's  name,  as  the  presidential  candi- 
date, at  the  head  of  its  columns,  and  on  March  6  completed  its 
ticket  with  "  General  James  A.  Bennett  of  New  York,  for  Vice- 
President."  1  Three  weeks  later  Bennett's  name  was  taken  down, 
and  on  June  19,  Sidney  Rigdon's  was  substituted  for  it.  There 
was  nothing  modest  in  the  Mormon  political  ambition. 

1  This  General  Bennett  was  not  the  first  mayor  of  Nauvoo,  as  some  writers  like 
Smucker  have  supposed,  but  a  lawyer  who  gave  his  address  as  "  Arlington  House,"  on 
Long  Island,  New  York,  and  who  in  1843  nac^  offered  himself  to  Smith  as  "  a  most  unde- 
viating  friend,"  etc. 


254  THE   STORY   OF  THE   MORiMONS 

Proof  of  Smith's  serious  view  of  his  candidacy  is  furnished  in 
his  next  step,  which  was  to  send  out  a  large  body  of  missionaries 
(two  or  three  thousand,  according  to  Governor  Ford)  to  work  up 
his  campaign  in  the  Eastern  and  Southern  states.  These  emissaries 
were  selected  from  among  the  ablest  of  Smith's  allies,  including 
Brigham  Young,  Lorenzo  Snow,  and  John  D.  Lee.  Their  absence 
from  Nauvoo  was  a  great  misfortune  to  Smith  at  the  time  of  his 
subsequent  arrest  and  imprisonment  at  Carthage. 

The  campaigners  began  work  at  once.  Lorenzo  Snow,  to 
whom  the  state  of  Ohio  was  allotted,  went  to  Kirtland,  where  he 
had  several  thousand  pamphlets  printed,  setting  forth  the  prophet's 
views  and  plans,  and  he  then  travelled  around  in  a  buggy,  distrib- 
uting the  pamphlets  and  making  addresses  in  Smith's  behalf. 
"To  many  persons,"  he  confesses,  "who  knew  nothing  of  Joseph 
but  through  the  ludicrous  reports  in  circulation,  the  movement 
seemed  a  species  of  insanity."  1  John  D.  Lee  was  a  most  devout 
Mormon,  but  his  judgment  revolted  against  this  movement.  "  I 
would  a  thousand  times  rather  have  been  shut  up  in  jail,"  he  says. 
He  began  his  canvassing  while  on  the  boat  bound  for  St.  Louis. 
"  I  told  them,"  he  relates,  "  the  prophet  would  lead  both  candi- 
dates. There  was  a  large  crowd  on  the  boat,  and  an  election  was 
proposed.  The  prophet  received  a  majority  of  75  out  of  125 
votes  polled.     This  created  a  tremendous  laugh."  2 

We  have  an  account  of  one  state  convention  called  to  consider 
Smith's  candidacy,  and  this  was  held  in  the  Melodeon  in  Boston, 
Massachusetts,  on  July  1,  1844,  the  news  of  Smith's  death  not  yet 
having  reached  that  city.  A  party  of  young  rowdies  practically 
took  possession  of  the  hall  as  soon  as  the  business  of  the  conven- 
tion began,  and  so  disturbed  the  proceedings  that  the  police  were 
sent  for,  and  they  were  able  to  clear  the  galleries  only  after  a 
determined  fight.  The  convention  then  adjourned  to  Bunker 
Hill,  but  nothing  further  is  heard  of  its  proceedings.  The  press 
of  the  city  condemned  the  action  of  the  disturbers  as  a  disgrace. 
Mention  is  made  in  the  Times  and  Seasons  of  July  1,  1844,  of 
a  conference  of  elders  held  in  Dresden,  Tennessee,  on  the  25th 
of  May  previous,  at  which  Smith's  name  was  presented  as  a 
presidential  candidate.     The  meeting  was  broken  up  by  a  mob, 

1  "  Biography  of  Lorenzo  Snow." 

2  "  Mormonism  Unveiled,"  p.  149. 


SMITH    A   CANDIDATE   FOR   PRESIDENT  255 

which  the  sheriff  confessed  himself  powerless  to  overcome,  but  it 
met  later  and  voted  to  print  three  thousand  copies  of  Smith's 
views. 

The  prophet's  death,  which  occurred  so  soon  after  the  announce- 
ment of  his  candidacy,  rendered  it  impossible  to  learn  how  serious 
a  cause  of  political  disturbance  that  candidacy  might  have  been  in 
neighborhoods  where  the  Mormons  had  a  following. 


CHAPTER  VII 

SOCIAL   CONDITIONS   IN   NAUVOO 

Having  followed  Smith's  political  operations  to  their  close,  it 
is  now  necessary  to  retrace  our  steps,  and  examine  the  social  con- 
ditions which  prevailed  in  and  around  Nauvoo  during  the  years  of 
his  reign  —  conditions  which  had  quite  as  much  to  do  in  causing 
the  expulsion  of  the  Mormons  from  the  state  as  did  his  political 
mistakes. 

It  must  be  remembered  that  Nauvoo  was  a  pioneer  town,  on 
the  borders  of  a  thinly  settled  country.  Its  population  and  that  of 
its  suburbs  consisted  of  the  refugees  from  Missouri,  of  whose 
character  we  have  had  proof;  of  the  converts  brought  in  from 
the  Eastern  states  and  from  Europe,  not  a  very  intelligent  body ; 
and  of  those  pioneer  settlers,  without  sympathy  with  the  Mormon 
beliefs,  who  were  attracted  to  the  place  from  various  motives. 
While  active  work  was  continued  by  the  missionaries  throughout 
the  United  States,  their  labors  in  this  country  seem  to  have  been 
more  efficient  in  establishing  local  congregations  than  in  secur- 
ing large  additions  to  the  population  of  Nauvoo,  although  some 
"  branches  "  moved  bodily  to  the  Mormon  centre.1 

Of  the  class  of  people  reached  by  the  early  missionaries  in 
England  we  have  this  description,  in  a  letter  from  Orson  Hyde  to 
his  wife,  dated  September  14,  1837:  — 

"  Those  who  have  been  baptized  are  mostly  manufacturers  and  some  other 
mechanics.  They  know  how  to  do  but  little  else  than  to  spin  and  weave  cloth, 
and  make  cambric,  mull  and  lace ;  and  what  they  would  do  in  Kirtland  or  the 
city  of  Far  West,  I  cannot  say.  They  are  extremely  poor,  most  of  them  not 
having  a  change  of  clothes  decent  to  be  baptized  in."2 

In  a  letter  of  instructions  from  Smith  to  the  travelling  elders 
in  Great  Britain,  dated  October,  1840,  he  warned  them  that  the 

1  Lee's  "  Mormonism  Unveiled,"  p.  135. 

2  Elders'  Journal,  Vol.  I,  No.  2. 

256 


SOCIAL   CONDITIONS    IN    NAUVOO  257 

gathering  of  the  Saints  must  be  "  attended  to  in  the  order  that  the 
Lord  intends  it  should  "  ;  and  he  explains  that,  as  "great  numbers 
of  the  Saints  in  England  are  extremely  poor,  ...  to  prevent  con- 
fusion and  disappointment  when  they  arrive  here,  let  those  men 
who  are  accustomed  to  making  machinery,  and  those  who  can 
command  a  capital,  though  it  be  small,  come  here  as  soon  as  con- 
venient and  put  up  machinery,  and  make  such  other  preparations 
as  may  be  necessary,  so  that  when  the  poor  come  on  they  may 
have  employment  to  come  to." 

The  invitation  to  all  converts  having  means  was  so  urgent  that 
it  took  the  form  of  a  command.  A  letter  to  the  Saints  abroad, 
signed  by  Joseph  and  Hyrum  Smith,  dated  January  15,  1841, 
directed  those  "  blessed  of  heaven  with  the  possession  of  this 
world's  goods  "  to  sell  out  as  soon  as  possible  and  move  to  Nau- 
voo,  adding  in  italics :  "  This  is  agreeable  to  the  order  of  heaven, 
and  the  only  principal  {sic)  on  which  the  gathering  can  be 
effected."  1 

We  have  seen  how  hard  pressed  Smith  was  for  money  with 
which  to  meet  his  obligations  for  the  payment  of  land  purchased. 
It  was  not  necessary  that  a  new-comer  should  be  a  Mormon  in 
order  to  buy  a  lot,  special  emphasis  being  laid  on  the  freedom  of 
religious  opinion  in  the  city ;  but  it  was  early  made  known  that 
purchasers  were  expected  to  buy  their  lots  of  the  church,  and  not 
of  private  speculators.     The  determination  with  which  this  rule 

1  The  following  is  a  quotation  from  a  letter  written  by  an  American  living  near 
Nauvoo,  dated  October  20,  1S42,  printed  in  the  postscript  to  Caswall's  "The  City  of  the 
Mormons  " :  — 

"  If  an  English  Mormon  arrives,  the  first  effort  of  Joe  is  to  get  his  money.  This  in 
most  cases  is  easily  accomplished,  under  a  pledge  that  he  can  have  it  at  any  time  on 
giving  ten  days1  notice.  The  man  after  some  time  calls  for  his  money;  he  is  treated 
kindly,  and  told  that  it  is  not  convenient  to  pay.  He  calles  a  second  time;  the  Prophet 
cannot  pay,  but  offers  a  town  lot  in  Nauvoo  for  $1000  (which  cost  perhaps  as  many  cents), 
or  land  on  the  '  half-breed  tract  '  at  $10  or  $15  per  acre.  .  .  .  Finally  some  of  the  irre- 
sponsible Bishops  or  Elders  execute  a  deed  for  land  to  which  they  have  no  valid  title,  and 
the  poor  fellow  dares  not  complain.  This  is  the  history  of  hundreds  of  cases.  .  .  .  The 
history  of  every  dupe  reaches  Nauvoo  in  advance.  When  an  Elder  abroad  wins  one  over 
to  the  faith,  he  makes  himself  perfectly  acquainted  with  all  his  family  arrangements,  his 
standing  in  society,  his  ability,  and  (what  is  of  most  importance)  the  amount  of  ready 
money  and  other  property  which  he  will  take  to  Nauvoo.  .  .  .  They  make  no  converts 
in  Nauvoo,  and  it  appears  to  me  that  they  would  never  make  another  if  all  could  witness 
their  conduct  at  Nauvoo  for  one  month.  ...  In  regard  to  this  communication,  I  pre- 
fer, on  account  of  my  own  safety,  that  you  should  not  make  known  the  author  publicly. 
You  cannot  appreciate  these  fears  [in  England].  You  have  no  idea  what  it  is  to  be 
surrounded  by  a  community  of  Mormons,  guided  by  a  leader  the  most  unprincipled." 


258  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

was  enforced,  as  well  as  its  unpopularity  in  some  quarters,  may  be 
seen  in  the  following  extract  from  Smith's  autobiography,  under 
date  of  February  13,  1843:  "I  spent  the  evening  at  Elder  O. 
Hyde's.  In  the  course  of  conversation  I  remarked  that  those 
brethren  who  came  here  having  money,  and  purchased  without 
the  church  and  without  counsel,  must  be  cut  off.  This,  with  other 
observations,  aroused  the  feelings  of  Brother  Dixon,  from  Salem, 
Mass.,  and  he  appeared  in  great  wrath." 

The  Nanvoo  Neighbor  of  December  27,  1843,  contained  an  ad- 
vertisement signed  by  the  clerk  of  the  church,  calling  the  atten- 
tion of  immigrants  to  the  church  lands,  and  saying,  "  Let  all  the 
brethren,  therefore,  when  they  move  into  Nauvoo,  consult  Presi- 
dent Joseph  Smith,  the  trustee  in  trust,  and  purchase  their  land 
from  him,  and  I  am  bold  to  say  that  God  will  bless  them,  and 
[they]  will  hereafter  be  glad  they  did  so." 

A  good  many  immigrants  of  more  or  less  means  took  warning 
as  soon  as  they  discovered  the  conditions  prevailing  there,  and 
returned  home.  A  letter  on  this  subject  from  the  officers  of  the 
church  said  :  — 

"  We  have  seen  so  many  who  have  been  disappointed  and  discouraged  when 
they  visited  this  place,  that  we  would  have  imagined  they  had  never  been  in- 
structed in  the  things  pertaining  to  the  Kingdom  of  God,  and  thought  that,  instead 
of  coming  into  a  society  of  men  and  women,  subject  to  all  the  frailties  of  mortal- 
ity, they  were  about  to  enjoy  the  society  of  the  spirits  of  just  men  made  perfect, 
the  holy  angels,  and  that  this  place  should  be  as  pure  as  the  third  heaven.  But 
when  they  found  that  this  people  were  but  flesh  and  blood  .  .  .  they  have  been 
desirous  to  choose  them  a  captain  to  lead  them  back." 

The  additions  to  the  Mormon  population  from  the  settlers 
whom  they  found  in  the  outlying  country  in  Illinois  and  Iowa  were 
not  likely  to  be  of  a  desirable  class.  The  banks  of  the  Mississippi 
River  had  long  been  hiding-places  for  pirate  bands,  whose  exploits 
were  notorious,  and  the  "  half-breed  tract  "  was  a  known  place  of 
refuge  for  the  horse  thief,  the  counterfeiter,  and  the  desperado  of 
any  calling.  The  settlement  of  the  Mormons  in  such  a  region, 
with  an  invitation  to  the  world  at  large  to  join  them  and  be  saved, 
was  a  piece  of  good  luck  for  this  lawless  class,  who  found  a  cover- 
ing cloak  in  the  new  baptism,  and  a  shield  in  the  fidelity  with  which 
the  Mormon  authorities,  under  their  charter,  defended  their  flock. 
In  this  way  Nauvoo  became  a  great  receptacle  for  stolen   goods, 


SOCIAL   CONDITIONS   IN   NAUVOO  259 

and  the  river  banks  up  and  down  the  stream  concealed  many  more, 
the  takers  of  which  walked  boldly  through  the  streets  of  the  Mor- 
mon city.  The  retaliatory  measures  which  Smith  encouraged  his  ( 
followers  to  practise  on  their  neighbors  in  Missouri  had  inculcated 
a  disregard  for  the  property  rights  of  non-Mormons,  which  became 
an  inciting  cause  of  hostilities  with  their  neighbors  in  Illinois. 

The  complaints  of  thefts  by  Mormons  became  so  frequent  that 
the  church  authorities  deemed  it  necessary  to  recognize  and  rebuke 
the  practice.  Lee  quotes  from  an  address  by  Smith  at  the  confer-  I 
ence  of  April,  1840,  in  Nauvoo,  in  which  the  prophet  said:  "We 
are  no  longer  at  war,  and  you  must  stop  stealing.  When  the  right 
time  comes,  we  will  go  in  force  and  take  the  whole  state  of  Mis- 
souri. It  belongs  to  us  as  our  inheritance ;  but  I  want  no  more 
petty  stealing.  A  man  that  will  steal  petty  articles  from  his  ene- 
mies will,  when  occasion  offers,  steal  from  his  brethren  too.  Now 
I  command  you  that  have  stolen  must  steal  no  more."  * 

The  case  of  Elder  O.  Walker  bears  on  this  subject.  On  Octo- 
ber 11,  1840,  he  was  brought  before  a  High  Council  and  accused 
of  discourtesy  to  the  prophet,  and  "  suggesting  (at  different  places) 
that  in  the  church  at  Nauvoo  there  did  exist  a  set  of  pilferers  who 
were  actually  thieving,  robbing  and  plundering,  taking  and  unlaw- 
fully carrying  away  from  Missouri  certain  goods  and  chattels, 
wares  and  property  ;  and  that  the  act  and  acts  of  such  supposed 
thieving,  etc.,  was  fostered  and  conducted  by  the  knowledge  and 
approval  of  the  heads  and  leaders  of  the  church,  viz.,  by  the  Presi- 
dency and  High  Council."  2 

The  action  of  the  church  authorities  themselves  shows  how  seri- 
ous they  considered  the  reports  about  thieving.  As  early  as  De- 
cember 1,  1 84 1,  Hyrum  Smith,  then  one  of  the  First  Presidency, 
published  in  the  Times  and  Seasons  an  affidavit  denying  that  the 
heads  of  the  church  "  sanction  and  approbate  the  members  of  said 
church  in  stealing  property  from  those  persons  who  do  not  belong 
to  said  church,"  etc.  This  was  followed  by  a  long  denial  of  a 
similar  character,  signed  by  the  Twelve,  and  later  by  an  affidavit 
by  the  prophet  himself,  denying  that  he  ever  "  directly  or  indi- 
rectly encouraged  the  purloining  of  property,  or  taught  the  doc- 
trine of  stealing."     On  March  25,  1843,  Smith,  as  mayor,  issued 

1  Lee's  "  Mormonism  Unveiled,"  p.  III. 

2  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XVIII,  p.  185. 


260  THE    STORY    OF   THE   MORMONS 

a  proclamation  beginning  with  the  declaration,  "  I  have  not  altered 
my  views  on  the  subject  of  stealing,"  reciting  rumors  of  a  secret 
band  of  desperadoes  bound  by  oath  to  self-protection,  and  pledg- 
ing pardon  to  any  one  who  would  give  him  any  information  about 
"  such  abominable  characters."  This  exhibition  of  the  heads  of 
a  church  solemnly  protesting  that  they  were  opposed  to  thieving  is 
unique  in  religious  history. 

The  Patriarch,  Hyrum  Smith,  made  an  announcement  to  the 
conference  of  1843,  which  further  confirms  the  charges  of  organ- 
ized thieving  made  by  the  non-Mormons.  While  denouncing  the 
thieves  as  hypocrites,  he  said  he  had  learned  of  the  existence  of  a 
band  held  together  by  secret  oaths  and  penalties,  "who  hold  it 
right  to  steal  from  any  one  who  does  not  belong  to  the  church, 
provided  they  consecrate  one-third  of  it  to  the  building  of  the  Tem- 
ple. They  are  also  making  bogus  money.  .  .  .  The  man  who 
told  me  this  said,  '  This  secret  band  referred  to  the  Bible,  Book 
of  Doctrine  and  Covenants,  and  Book  of  Mormon  to  substantiate 
their  doctrines ;  and  if  any  of  them  did  not  remain  steadfast,  they 
ripped  open  their  bowels  and  gave  them  to  the  cat  fish.'  "  He 
named  two  men,  inmates  of  his  own  house,  who,  he  had  discovered, 
were  such  thieves.  The  prophet  followed  this  statement  with  some 
remarks,  declaring,  "Thieving  must  be  stopped."  1 

The  Rev.  Henry  Caswall,  in  a  description  of  a  Sunday  service 
in  Nauvoo  in  April,  1842  ("  City  of  the  Mormons,"  p.  15)  says: 
"  The  elder  who  had  delivered  the  first  discourse  now  rose  and 
said  a  certain  brother  whom  he  named  had  taken  a  keg  of  white 
lead.  '  Now,'  said  he,  '  if  any  of  the  brethren  present  has  taken 
it  by  mistake,  thinking  it  was  his  own,  he  ought  to  restore  it ;  but 
if  any  of  the  brethren  present  have  stolen  a  keg,  much  more  ought 
he  to  restore  it,  or  else  maybe  he  will  get  catched.'  .  .  .  Another 
person  rose  and  stated  that  he  had  lost  a  ten  dollar  bill.  If  any  of 
the  brethren  had  found  it  or  taken  it,  he  hoped  it  would  be  re- 
stored." This  introduction  of  calls  for  the  restoration  of  stolen 
property  as  a  feature  of  a  Sunday  church  service  is  probably  unique 
with  the  Mormons. 

That  the  Mormons  did  not  do  all  the  thieving  in  the  counties 
around  Nauvoo  while  they  were  there  would  be  sufficiently  proved 
by  the  character  of  many  of  the  persons  whom  they  found  there 

1  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XX,  pp.  757-758. 


SOCIAL   CONDITIONS   IN    NAUVOO  261 

on  their  arrival,  and  also  by  the  fact  that  their  expulsion  did  not 
make  those  counties  a  paradise.1  The  trouble  with  them  was  that, 
as  soon  as  a  man  joined  them,  no  matter  what  his  previous  char- 
acter might  have  been,  they  gave  him  that  protection  which  came 
with  their  system  of  "standing  together."  An  early  and  signifi- 
cant proof  of  this  protection  is  found  in  the  action  of  the  confer- 
ence held  in  Nauvoo  on  October  3,  1840,  two  months  before  the 
charter  had  given  the  city  government  its  extended  powers,  which 
voted  that  "  no  person  be  considered  guilty  of  crime  unless  proved 
by  the  testimony  of  two  or  three  witnesses."2 

It  became  notorious  in  all  the  country  round  that  it  was  practi- 
cally useless  for  a  non-Mormon  to  attempt  the  recovery  of  stolen 
property  in  Nauvoo,  no  matter  how  strong  the  proof  in  his  posses- 
sion might  be.  S.  J.  Clarke3  says  that  a  great  deal  of  stolen  stock 
was  traced  into  Nauvoo,  but  that,  "  when  found,  it  was  extremely 
difficult  to  gain  possession  of  it."  He  cites  as  an  illustration  the 
case  of  a  resident  of  that  county  who  traced  a  stolen  horse  into 
Nauvoo,  and  took  with  him  sixty  witnesses  to  identify  the  animal 
before  a  Mormon  justice  of  the  peace.  He  found  himself,  how- 
ever, confronted  with  seventy  witnesses  who  swore  that  the  horse 
belonged  to  some  Mormon,  and  the  justice  decided  that  the  "  weight 
of  evidence,"  numerically  calculated,  was  against  the  non-Mormon. 

A  form  of  protection  against  outside  inquirers  for  property, 
which  is  well  authenticated,  was  given  by  what  were  known  as 
"  whittlers."  When  a  non-Mormon  came  into  the  city,  and  by  his 
questions  let  it  be  known  that  he  was  looking  for  something  stolen, 
he  would  soon  find  himself  approached  by  a  Mormon  who  carried 
a  long  knife  and  a  stick,  and  who  would  follow  him,  silently  whit- 
tling. Soon  a  companion  would  join  this  whittler,  and  then  another, 
until  the  stranger  would  find  himself  fairly  surrounded  by  these 
armed  but  silent  observers.  Unless  he  was  a  man  of  more  than 
ordinary  grit,  an  hour  or  more  of  this  companionship  would  con- 
vince him  that  it  would  be  well  for  him  to  start  for  home.4 

1  "  Long  afterward,  while  the  writer  was  travelling  through  Hancock,  Pike  and 
Adams  Counties,  no  family  thought  of  retiring  at  night  without  barring  and  double- 
locking  every  ingress."  —  Beadle,  "  Life  in  Utah,"  p.  65. 

2  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XVIII,  p.  153. 

3  "  History  of  McDonough  County,"  p.  83. 
*  Lee's  "  Mormonism  Unveiled,"  p.  168. 


CHAPTER  VIII 

SMITH'S   PICTURE   OF   HIMSELF   AS   AUTOCRAT 

Smith's  autobiography  gives  incidentally  many  interesting 
glimpses  of  the  prophet  as  he  exercised  his  authority  of  dictator 
during  the  height  of  his  power  at  Nauvoo.  It  is  fortunate  for  the 
impartial  student  that  these  records  are  at  his  disposal,  because 
many  of  the  statements,  if  made  on  any  other  authority,  would 
be  met  by  the  customary  Mormon  denials,  and  be  considered 
generally  incredible. 

That  Smith's  life,  aside  from  the  constant  danger  of  extradition 
which  the  Missouri  authorities  held  over  him,  was  not  an  easy  one 
at  this  time  may  readily  be  imagined.  He  had  his  position  to 
maintain  as  sole  oracle  of  the  church.  He  was  also  mayor,  judge, 
councillor,  and  lieutenant  general.  There  were  individual  jeal- 
ousies to  be  disposed  of  among  his  associates,  rivalries  of  different 
parts  of  the  city  over  wished-for  improvements  to  be  considered, 
demands  of  the  sellers  of  church  lands  for  payment  to  be  met,  and 
the  claims  of  politicians  to  be  attended  to.  But  Smith  rarely 
showed  any  indication  of  compromise,  apparently  convinced  that 
his  position  at  all  points  was  now  more  secure  than  it  had  ever 
been. 

The  big  building  enterprises  in  which  the  church  was  engaged 
were  a  heavy  tax  on  the  people,  and  constant  urging  was  necessary 
to  keep  them  up  to  the  requirements.  Thus  we  find  an  advertise- 
ment in  the  Wasp  dated  June  25,  1842,  and  signed  by  the  "  Temple 
Recorder,"  saying,  "  Brethren,  remember  that  your  contracts  with 
your  God  are  sacred  ;  the  labor  is  wanted  immediately."  Smith 
referred  to  the  discontent  of  the  laborers,  and  to  some  other  mat- 
ters, in  a  sermon  on  February  21,  1843.  The  following  quotations 
are  from  his  own  report  of  it.  "  If  any  man  [working  on  the  Nau- 
voo House]  is  hungry,  let  him  come  to  me  and  I  will  feed  him  at 

262 


SMITH'S    PICTURE    OF    HIMSELF   AS    AUTOCRAT  263 

my  table  .  .  .  and  then  if  the  man  is  not  satisfied  I  will  kick  his 
backside.  .  .  .  This  meeting  was  got  up  by  the  Nauvoo  House 
committee.  The  Pagans,  Roman  Catholics,  Methodists  and  Bap- 
tists shall  have  place  in  Nauvoo  —  only  they  must  be  ground  in 
Joe  Smith's  mill.  I  have  been  in  their  mill  .  .  .  and  those  who 
come  here  must  go  through  my  smut  machine,  and  that  is  my 
tongue."1  The  difficulty  of  carrying  on  these  building  enterprises 
at  this  time  was  increased  by  the  financial  disturbance  that  was 
convulsing  the  whole  country.  It  was  in  these  years  that  Congress 
was  wrestling  with  the  questions  of  the  deposits  of  the  public  funds, 
the  United  States  Bank,  the  subtreasury  scheme,  and  the  falling 
off  of  customs  and  land-sale  revenues,  with  a  threatened  deficit  in 
the  federal  treasury.  The  break-down  of  the  Bank  of  the  United 
States  caused  a  general  failure  of  the  banks  of  the  Western  and 
Southern  states,  and  money  was  so  scarce  at  Nauvoo  that  one 
Mormon  writer  records  the  fact  that  "  when  corn  was  brought  to 
my  door  at  ten  cents  a  bushel,  and  sadly  needed,  the  money  could 
not  be  raised." 

The  relations  between  Smith  and  Rigdon  had  been  strained  \ 
ever  since  the  departure  of  the  Mormons  from  Missouri.  The 
trouble  between  them  was  finally  brought  before  a  special  confer- 
ence at  Nauvoo,  on  October  7,  1843,  at  which  Smith  stated  that  he 
had  received  no  material  benefits  from  Rigdon's  labors  or  counsel 
since  they  had  left  Missouri.  He  presented  complaints  against 
Rigdon's  management  of  the  post-office,  brought  up  a  charge  that 
Rigdon  had  been  in  correspondence  with  General  Bennett  and 
Governor  Carlin,  and  offered  "indirect  testimony  "  that  Rigdon  had 
given  the  Missourians  information  of  Smith's  whereabouts  at  the 
time  of  his  last  arrest.  Rigdon  met  these  accusations,  some  with 
denials  and  some  with  explanations,  closing  with  a  pitiful  appeal 
to  the  all-powerful  head  of  the  church,  whose  nod  would  decide  the 
verdict,  reciting  their  long  associations  and  sufferings,  and  signify- 
ing his  willingness  to  resign  his  position  as  councillor  to  the  First 
Presidency,  but  not  concealing  the  pain  and  humiliation  that  such 
a  step  would  cause  him.  Smith  became  magnanimous.  "  He  ex- 
pressed entire  willingness  to  have  Elder  Rigdon  retain  his  station, 
provided  he  would  magnify  his  office,  and  walk  and  conduct  him- 
self in  all  honesty,  righteousness  and  integrity ;  but  signified  his 

1  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XX,  p.  583. 


264  THE    STORY    OF   THE    MORMONS 

lack  of  confidence  in  his  integrity  and  steadfastness."  2  This  inci- 
dent once  more  furnishes  proof  of  some  great  power  which  Smith 
held  over  Rigdon  that  induced  the  latter  to  associate  with  the  prophet 
on  these  terms. 

Smith's  creditors  finally  pressed  him  so  hard  that  he  attempted 
to  secure  aid  from  the  bankruptcy  act.  In  this  he  did  not  succeed,2 
and  he  was  very  bitter  in  his  denunciation  of  the  law  because  it 
was  interpreted  against  him.  It  was  about  this  time  that  Smith, 
replying  to  reports  of  his  wealth,  declared  that  his  assets  consisted 
of  one  old  horse,  two  pet  deer,  ten  turkeys,  an  old  cow,  one  old 
dog,  a  wife  and  child,  and  a  little  household  furniture.  On  March 
1,  1843,  the  Council  of  the  Twelve  wrote  to  the  outlying  branches 
of  the  church,  calling  on  them  "  to  bring  to  our  President  as  many 
loads  of  wheat,  corn,  beef,  pork,  lard,  tallow,  eggs,  poultry,  veni- 
son, and  everything  eatable,  at  your  command,"  in  order  that  he 
might  be  relieved  of  business  cares  and  have  time  to  attend  to  their 
spiritual  interests.  It  was  characteristic  of  Smith  to  find  him,  at 
a  conference  held  the  following  month,  lecturing  the  Twelve  on 
their  own  idleness,  telling  them  it  was  not  necessary  for  them 
to  be  abroad  all  the  time  preaching  and  gathering  funds,  but 
that  they  should  spend  a  part  of  their  time  at  home  earning  a 
living. 

At  this  same  conference  Smith  was  compelled  to  go  into  the 
details  of  a  transaction  which  showed  of  how  little  practical  use  to 
him  were  his  divining  and  prophetic  powers.  A  man  named  Rem- 
ick  had  come  to  him  the  previous  summer  and  succeeded  in  getting 
from  him  a  loan  of  $200  by  misrepresentation.  Afterward  Remick 
offered  to  give  him  a  quit-claim  deed  for  all  the  land  bought  of 
Galland,  as  well  as  the  notes  which  Smith  had  given  to  Galland, 
and  one-half  of  all  the  land  that  Remick  owned  in  Illinois  and  Iowa, 
if  Smith  would  use  his  influence  to  build  up  the  city  of  Keokuk, 
Iowa.  Smith  actually  agreed  to  this  in  writing.  At  the  conference 
he  had  to  explain  this  whole  affair.  After  alleging  that  Remick 
was  a  swindler,  he  said  :  "  I  am  not  so  much  of  a  '  Christian '  as 
many  suppose  I  am.     When  a  man  undertakes  to  ride  me  for  a 

1  Times  and  Seasons,  Vol.  IV,  p.  330.  H.  C.  Kimball  stated  afterward  at  Rigdon's 
church  trial  that  Smith  did  not  accept  him  as  an  adviser  after  this,  but  took  Amasa 
Lyman  in  his  place,  and  that  it  was  Hyrum  Smith  who  induced  his  brother  to  show  some 
apparent  magnanimity. 

2  See  chapter  on  this  subject  in  Bennett's  "  History  of  the  Saints." 


SMITH'S   PICTURE   OF  HIMSELF   AS   AUTOCRAT  265 

horse  I  feel  disposed  to  kick  up,  and  throw  him  off  and  ride  him. 
David  did  so,  and  so  did  Joshua."  1 

The  old  Kirtland  business  troubles  came  up  to  annoy  Smith 
from  time  to  time,  but  he  always  found  a  way  to  meet  them.  While 
his  writ  of  habeas  corpus  was  under  argument  out  of  the  city  in  1841, 
a  man  presented  to  him  a  five-dollar  bill  of  the  Kirtland  Bank,  and 
threatened  to  sue  him  on  it.  As  the  easiest  way  to  dispose  of  this 
matter,  Smith  handed  the  man  $$. 

Smith's  Ohio  experience  did  not  lessen  his  estimation  of  him- 
self as  an  authority  on  finance.  We  find  him,  at  the  meeting  of 
the  Nauvoo  City  Council  on  February  25,  1843,  denouncing  the 
state  law  of  Illinois  making  property  a  legal  tender  for  the  pay- 
ment of  debts;  asserting  that  their  city  charter  gave  them  authority 
to  enact  such  local  currency  laws  as  did  not  conflict  with  the  fed- 
eral and  state  constitutions,  and  continuing  :  — 

"  Shall  we  be  such  fools  as  to  be  governed  by  their  [Illinois]  laws  which  are 
unconstitutional?  No.  We  will  make  a  law  for  gold  and  silver ;  then  their  law 
ceases,  and  we  can  collect  our  debts.  Powers  not  delegated  to  the  states,  or 
reserved  from  the  states,  are  constitutional.  The  constitution  acknowledges  that 
the  people  have  all  power  not  reserved  to  itself.  I  am  a  lawyer.  I  am  a  big 
lawyer,  and  comprehend  heaven,  earth  and  hell,  to  bring  forth  knowledge  that 
shall  cover  up  all  lawyers,  doctors  and  other  big  bodies."  2 

Smith  had  his  way,  as  usual,  and  on  March  4,  the  Council 
passed  unanimously  an  ordinance  making  gold  and  silver  the  only 
legal  tender  in  payment  of  debts  and  fines  in  Nauvoo,  and  fixing  a 
punishment  for  the  circulation  of  counterfeit  money.  Perhaps  this 
Council  never  took  a  broader  view  of  its  legislative  authority  than 
in  this  instance. 

Smith  never  laid  aside  his  natural  inclination  for  good  fellow- 
ship, nor  took  himself  too  seriously  while  posing  as  a  mouthpiece 
of  the  Lord.  Along  with  the  entries  recording  his  predictions  he 
notes  such  matters  as  these  :  "  Played  ball  with  the  brethren." 
v<  Cut  wood  all  day."  A  visitor  at  Nauvoo,  in  1843,  describes  him 
as  "  a  jolly  fellow,  and  one  of  the  last  persons  whom  he  would 
have  supposed  God  would  have  raised  up  as  a  Prophet."3      Josiah 

1  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XX,  pp.  758-759.  2  Ibid.,  p.  616. 

8  This  same  idea  is  presented  by  a  writer  in  the  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XVII,  p. 
820:  "When  the  fact  of  Smith's  divine  character  shall  burst  upon  the  nations,  they  will 
be  struck  dumb  with  wonder  and  astonishment  at  the  Lord's  choice,  —  the  last  individ- 
ual in  the  whole  world  whom  they  would  have  chosen." 


266  THE    STORY    OF    THE   MORMONS 

Quincy  said  that  Smith  seemed  to  him  to  have  a  keen  sense  of  the 
humorous  aspects  of  his  position.  "  It  seems  to  me,  General," 
Quincy  said  to  him,  "  that  you  have  too  much  power  to  be  safely 
trusted  in  one  man."  "  In  your  hands  or  that  of  any  other  person," 
was  his  reply,  "  so  much  power  would  no  doubt  be  dangerous.  I 
am  the  only  man  in  the  world  whom  it  would  be  safe  to  trust  with 
it.  Remember,  I  am  a  prophet."  "The  last  five  words,"  says 
Quincy,  "were  spoken  in  a  rich  comical  aside,  as  if  in  hearty 
recognition  of  the  ridiculous  sound  they  might  have  in  the  ears  of 
a  Gentile."1 

Smith  makes  this  entry  on  February  20,  1843:  "While  the 
[Municipal]  Court  was  in  session,  I  saw  two  boys  fighting  in  the 
street.  I  left  the  business  of  the  court,  ran  over  immediately, 
caught  one  of  the  boys  and  then  the  other,  and  after  giving  them 
proper  instruction,  I  gave  the  bystanders  a  lecture  for  not  interfer- 
ing in  such  cases.  I  returned  to  the  court,  and  told  them  nobody 
was  allowed  to  fight  in  Nauvoo  but  myself." 

In  January,  1842,  Smith  once  more  became  a  "storekeeper." 
Writing  to  an  absent  brother  on  January  5,  1842,  he  described  his 
building,  with  a  salesroom  fitted  up  with  shelves  and  drawers,  a 
private  office,  etc.  He  added  that  he  had  a  fair  stock,  "  although 
some  individuals  have  succeeded  in  detaining  goods  to  a  consider- 
able amount.  I  have  stood  behind  the  counter  all  day,"  he  contin- 
ued, "  dealing  out  goods  as  steadily  as  any  clerk  you  ever  saw."2 

The  following  entry  is  found  under  date  of  June  1,  1842: 
"  Sent  Dr.  Richards  to  Carthage  on  business.  On  his  return,  old 
Charley,  while  on  a  gallop,  struck  his  knees  and  breast  instead  of 
his  feet,  fell  in  the  street  and  rolled  over  in  an  instant,  and  the 
doctor  narrowly  escaped  with  his  life.  It  was  a  trick  of  the  devil 
to  kill  my  clerk.  Similar  attacks  have  been  made  upon  myself  of 
late,  and  Satan  is  seeking  our  destruction  on  every  hand." 

Smith  practically  gave  up  "  revealing  "  during  his  life  in  Nau- 
voo. At  Rigdon's  church  trial,  after  Smith's  death,  President 
Marks  said,  "  Brother  Joseph  told  us  that  he,  for  the  future, 
whenever  there  was  a  revelation  to  be  presented  to  the  church, 
would  first  present  it  to  the  Quorum,  and  then,  if  it  passed  the 
Quorum,  it  should  be  presented  to  the  church."  Strong  pressure 
must  have  been  exerted  upon  the    prophet   to    persuade  him  to 

l  "  Figures  of  the  Past,"  p.  397.  2  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XIX,  p.  21. 


SMITH'S    PICTURE   OF    HIMSELF   AS    AUTOCRAT  267 

consent  to  such  a  restriction,  and  it  is  the  only  instance  of  the  kind 
that  is  recorded  during  his  career.  But  if  he  did  not  "  reveal,"  he 
could  not  be  prevented  from  uttering  oral  prophecies  and  giving 
his  interpretation  of  the  Scriptures.  That  he  had  become  pos- 
sessed with  the  idea  of  a  speedy  ending  of  this  world  seems  alto- 
gether probable.  All  through  his  autobiography  he  notes  reports 
of  earthquakes,  tornadoes,  floods,  etc.,  and  he  gives  special  em- 
phasis to  accounts  that  reached  him  of  "  showers  of  flesh  and 
blood."  Under  date  of  February  18,  1843,  he  notes,  "While  at 
dinner  I  remarked  to  my  family  and  friends  present  that,  when 
the  earth  was  sanctified  and  became  like  a  sea  of  glass,  it  would 
be  one  great  Urim  and  Thummim,  and  the  Saints  could  look  in  it 
and  see  as  they  are  seen."  Another  of  his  wise  sayings  is  thus 
recorded,  "  The  battle  of  Gog  and  Magog  will  be  after  the 
Millennial." 

In  some  remarks,  on  April  2,  1843,  Smith  made  the  one  predic- 
tion that  came  true,  and  one  which  has  always  given  the  greatest 
satisfaction  to  the  Saints.  This  was  :  "  I  prophesy  in  the  name  of 
the  Lord  God  that  the  commencement  of  the  difficulties  which  will  y 
cause  much  bloodshed  previous  to  the  coming  of  the  Son  of  man 
will  be  in  South  Carolina.  It  may  probably  arise  through  the 
slave  trade."  This  prediction  was  afterward  amplified  so  as  to 
declare  that  the  war  between  the  Northern  and  Southern  states 
would  involve  other  nations  in  Europe,  and  that  the  slaves  would 
rise  up  against  their  masters.  It  would  have  been  better  for  his 
fame  had  he  left  the  announcement  in  its  original  shape. 

Such  is  the  picture  of  Smith  the  prophet  as  drawn  by  himself. 
Of  the  rumors  about  the  Mormons,  current  in  all  the  counties  near 
Nauvoo,  which  cannot  be  proved  by  Mormon  testimony  there  were 
hundreds. 


CHAPTER   IX 
SMITH'S   FALLING   OUT   WITH   BENNETT   AND   HIGBEE 

Surprise  has  been  expressed  that  Smith  would  permit  the  new- 
comer, General  John  C.  Bennett,  to  be  elected  the  first  mayor  of 
Nauvoo  under  the  new  charter.  Much  less  surprising  is  the  fact 
that  a  falling  out  soon  occurred  between  them  which  led  to  the 
withdrawal  of  Bennett  from  the  church  on  May  17,  1842,  and 
made  for  the  prophet  an  enemy  who  pursued  him  with  a  method 
and  vindictiveness  that  he  had  not  before  encountered  from  any 
of  those  who  had  withdrawn,  or  been  driven,  from  the  church 
fellowship. 

The  exact  nature  of  the  dispute  between  the  two  men  has  never 
been  explained.  That  personal  jealousy  entered  into  it  there  is 
little  doubt.  Smith  never  had  submitted  to  any  real  division  of 
his  supreme  authority,  and  when  Bennett  entered  the  fold  as  politi- 
cal lobbyist,  mayor,  major  general,  etc.,  a  clash  seemed  unavoid- 
able. It  was  stated,  during  Rigdon's  church  trial  after  Smith's 
death,  that  Bennett  declared,  at  the  first  conference  he  attended  at 
Nauvoo,  that  he  sustained  the  same  position  in  the  First  Presidency 
that  the  Holy  Ghost  does  to  the  Father  and  the  Son ;  and  that, 
after  Smith's  death,  Bennett  visited  Nauvoo,  and  proposed  to  Rig- 
don  that  the  latter  assume  Smith's  place  in  the  church,  and  let 
Bennett  assume  that  which  had  been  occupied  by  Rigdon.1 

The  Mormon  explanation  given  at  the  time  of  Bennett's  expul- 
sion was  that  some  of  their  travelling  elders  in  the  Eastern  states 
discovered  that  the  general  had  a  wife  and  family  there  while  he 
was  paying  attention  to  young  ladies  in  Nauvoo ;  but  a  very  slight 
acquaintance  with  Smith's  ideas  on  the  question  of  morality  at  that 
time  is  needed  to  indicate  that  this  was  an  afterthought.  The 
course  of  the  church  authorities  showed  that  they  were  ready  to 

1  Times  and  Seasons,  Vol.  V,  p.  655. 
268 


SMITH'S   FALLING   OUT   WITH    BENNETT   AND   HIGBEE     269 

make  any  concession  to  avoid  a  public  explanation  by  Bennett. 
Only  about  three  weeks  before  his  withdrawal,  Rigdon  wrote  that 
he  was  "  honorable  in  his  intercourse  with  his  fellows,  .  .  .  and 
every  way  qualified  to  be  a  useful  citizen."  Smith  directed  the 
clerk  of  the  church  to  permit  Bennett  to  withdraw  "  if  he  desires 
to  do  so,  and  this  with  the  best  of  feelings  toward  you  and  General 
Bennett."  But  as  soon  as  Bennett  began  his  attacks  on  Smith  the 
church  made  haste  to  withdraw  the  hand  of  fellowship  from  him, 
and  framed  a  formal  writ  of  excommunication,  and  Smith  could 
not  find  enough  phials  of  wrath  to  pour  upon  him.  Thus,  in  a 
statement  published  in  the  Times  and  Seasons  of  July  1,  1842,  he 
called  Bennett  "an  impostor  and  a  base  adulterer,"  brought  up 
the  story  of  his  having  a  wife  in  Ohio,  and  charged  that  he  taught 
women  that  it  was  proper  to  have  promiscuous  intercourse  with 
men. 

As  soon  as  Bennett  left  Nauvoo  he  began  the  publication  of 
a  series  of  letters  in  the  Sangamon  (Illinois)  Journal,  which  pur- 
ported to  give  an  inside  view  of  the  Mormon  designs,  and  the 
personal  character  and  practices  of  the  church  leaders.  These 
were  widely  copied,  and  seem  to  have  given  people  in  the  East 
their  first  information  that  Smith  was  anything  worse  than  a 
religious  pretender.  Bennett  also  started  East  lecturing  on  the 
same  subject,  and  he  published  in  Boston  in  the  same  year  a 
little  book  called  "  History  of  the  Saints ;  or  an  Expose  of  Joe 
Smith  and  Mormonism,"  containing,  besides  material  which  he 
had  collected,  copious  extracts  from  the  books  of  Howe  and 
W.  Harris. 

Bennett  declared  that  he  had  never  believed  in  any  of  the 
Mormon  doctrines,  but  that,  forming  the  opinion  that  their  leaders 
were  planning  to  set  up  "a  despotic  and  religious  empire"  over 
the  territory  included  in  Ohio,  Indiana,  Illinois,  Iowa,  and  Mis- 
souri, he  decided  to  join  them,  learn  their  secrets,  and  expose 
them.  Bennett's  personal  rascality  admits  of  no  doubt,  and  not 
the  least  faith  need  be  placed  in  this  explanation  of  his  course, 
which,  indeed,  is  disproved  by  his  later  efforts  to  regain  power  in 
the  church.  It  does  seem  remarkable,  however,  that  neither  the 
Lord  nor  his  prophet  knew  anything  about  Bennett's  rascality,  and 
that  they  should  select  him,  among  others,  for  special  mention  in 
the  long  revelation  of  January   19,  1841,  wherein  the  Lord  calls 


2yo  THE    STORY    OF   THE    MORMONS 

him  "  my  servant,"  and  directs  him  to  help  Smith  "  in  sending  my 
word  to  the  kings  of  the  people  of  the  earth."  There  is  no  doubt 
that  Bennett  obtained  an  inside  view  of  Smith's  moral,  political, 
and  religious  schemes,  and  that,  while  his  testimony  uncorrobo- 
rated might  be  questioned,  much  that  he  wrote  was  amply  con- 
firmed. 

According  to  Bennett's  statements,  Mormon  society  at  Nauvoo 
was  organized  licentiousness.  There  were  "  Cyprian  Saints," 
"  Chartered  Sisters  of  Charity,"  and  "  Cloistered  Saints,"  or  spirit- 
ual wives,  all  designed  to  pander  to  the  passions  of  church  mem- 
bers. Of  the  system  of  "  spiritual  wives  "  (which  was  set  forth  in 
the  revelation  concerning  polygamy),  Bennett  says  in  his  book :  — 

"  When  an  Apostle,  High  Priest,  Elder  or  Scribe  conceives  an  affection  for  a 
female,  and  he  has  satisfactorily  ascertained  that  she  experiences  a  mutual  claim, 
he  communicates  confidentially  to  the  Prophet  his  affaire  dn  cceur,  and  requests 
him  to  inquire  of  the  Lord  whether  or  not  it  would  be  right  and  proper  for  him 
to  take  unto  himself  the  said  woman  for  his  spiritual  wife.  It  is  no  obstacle 
whatever  to  this  spiritual  marriage  if  one  or  both  of  the  parties  should  happen  to 
have  a  husband  or  wife  already  united  to  them  according  to  the  laws  of  the  land." 

Bennett  alleged  that  Smith  forced  him,  at  the  point  of  a 
pistol,  to  sign  an  affidavit  stating  that  Smith  had  no  part  in  the 
practice  of  the  spiritual  wife  doctrine;  but  Bennett's  later  disclos- 
ures went  into  minute  particulars  of  alleged  attempts  of  Smith  to 
secure  "  spiritual  wives,"  a  charge  which  the  commandments  to 
the  prophet's  wife  in  the  "  revelation "  on  polygamy  amply  sus- 
tain. A  leading  illustration  cited  concerned  the  wife  of  Orson 
Pratt.1  According  to  the  story  as  told  (largely  in  Mrs.  Pratt's 
words),  Pratt  was  sent  to  England  on  a  mission  to  get  him  out  of 
the  way,  and  then  Smith  used  every  means  in  his  power  to  secure 
Mrs.  Pratt's  consent  to  his  plan,  but  in  vain.  Nancy  Rigdon,  the 
eldest  unmarried  daughter  of  Sidney  Rigdon,  was  another  alleged 
intended  victim  of  the  prophet,  and  Bennett  said  that  Smith 
offered  him  $500  in  cash,  or  a  choice  lot,  if  he  would  assist  in  the 
plot.  One  day,  when  Smith  was  alone  with  her,  he  pressed  his 
request  so  hard  that  she  threatened  to  cry  for  help.  The  con- 
tinuation of  the  story  is  not  by  General  Bennett,  but  is  taken  from 

1  Ebenezer  Robinson  says  that  when  Orson  Pratt  returned  from  his  mission  to 
England,  and  learned  of  the  teaching  of  the  spiritual  wife  doctrine,  his  mind  gave  way. 
One  day  he  disappeared,  and  a  search  party  found  him  five  miles  below  Nauvoo,  hatless, 
seated  on  the  bank  of  the  river.  —  The  Return,  Vol.  II,  p.  363. 


SMITH'S    FALLING    OUT   WITH    BENNETT   AND    HIGBEE     271 

a  letter  to  James  A.  Bennett,  he  of  "Arlington  House,"  dated 
Nauvoo,  July  27,  1842,  by  George  W.  Robinson,  one  of  Smith's 
fellow-prisoners  in  Independence  jail,  and  one  of  the  generals  of 
the  Nauvoo  Legion  :  — 

"  She  left  him  with  disgust,  and  came  home  and  told  her  father  of  the  trans- 
action ;  upon  which  Smith  was  sent  for.  He  came.  She  told  the  tale  in  the 
presence  of  all  the  family,  and  to  Smith's  face.  I  was  present.  Smith  attempted 
to  deny  at  first,  and  face  her  down  with  a  lie;  but  she  told  the  facts  with  so 
much  earnestness,  and  the  fact  of  a  letter  being  proved  which  he  had  caused  to 
be  written  to  her  on  the  same  subject,  the  day  after  the  attempt  made  on  her 
virtue,  breathing  the  same  spirit,  and  which  he  had  fondly  hoped  was  destroyed, 
all  came  with  such  force  that  he  could  not  withstand  the  testimony ;  and  he 
then  and  there  acknowledged  that  every  word  of  Miss  Rigdon's  testimony  was 
true.     Now  for  his  excuse.     He  wished  to  ascertain  if  she  was  virtuous  or  not ! " 

To  offset  this  damaging  attack  on  Smith,  a  man  named  Mark- 
ham  was  induced  to  make  an  affidavit  assailing  Miss  Rigdon's 
character,  which  was  published  in  the  Wasp.  But  Markham's 
own  character  was  so  bad,  and  the  charge  caused  so  much  indig- 
nation, that  the  editor  was  induced  to  say  that  the  affidavit  was 
not  published  by  the  prophet's  direction. 

Bennett's  charges  aroused  great  interest  among  the  non-Mor- 
mons in  all  the  counties  around  Nauvoo,  and  increased  the  grow- 
ing enmity  against  Smith's  flock  which  was  already  aroused  by 
their  political  course  and  their  alleged  propensity  to  steal. 

A  minor  incident  among  those  leading  up  to  Smith's  final 
catastrophe  was  a  quarrel,  some  time  later,  between  the  prophet 
and  Francis  M.  Higbee.  This  resulted  in  a  suit  for  libel  against 
Smith,  tried  in  May,  1844,  in  which  much  testimony  disclosing 
the  rotten  condition  of  affairs  in  Nauvoo  was  given,  and  in  the 
arrest  of  Smith  in  a  suit  for  $5000  damages.  The  hearing,  on  a 
writ  of  habeas  corpus,  in  Smith's  behalf,  is  reported  in  Times  and 
Seasons,  Vol.  V,  No.  10.  The  court  (Smith's  Municipal  Court) 
ordered  Smith  discharged,  and  pronounced  Higbee's  character 
proved  "infamous." 


CHAPTER   X 
THE  INSTITUTION  OF  POLYGAMY 

The  student  of  the  history  of  the  Mormon  church  to  this  date, 
who  seeks  an  answer  to  the  question,  Who  originated  the  idea  of 
plural  marriages  among  the  Mormons  ?  will  naturally  credit  that 
idea  to  Joseph  Smith.  Jr.  The  Reorganized  Church  (non-polyga 
mist),  whose  membership  includes  Smith's  direct  descendants, 
defend  the  prophet's  memory  by  alleging  that  "  in  the  brain  of 
^-J.  C.  Bennett  was  conceived  the  idea,  and  in  his  practice  was  the 
principle  first  introduced  into  the  church."  In  maintaining  this 
ground,  however,  they  contend  that  "  the  official  character  of  Presi- 
dent Joseph  Smith  should  be  judged  by  his  official  ministrations  as 
set  forth  in  the  well-authenticated  accepted  official  documents  of 
the  church  up  to  June  27,  1844.  His  personal,  private  conduct 
should  not  enter  into  this  discussion."  2  The  secular  investigator 
finds  it  necessary  to  disregard  this  warning,  and  in  studying  the 
question  he  discovers  an  incontrovertible  mass  of  testimony  to 
prove  that  the  "  revelation  "  concerning  polygamy  was  a  produc- 
tion of  Smith,2  was  familiar  to  the  church  leaders  in  Nauvoo,  and 
was  lived  up  to  by  them  before  their  expulsion  from  Illinois. 

The  Book  of  Mormon  furnishes  ample  proof  that  the  idea  of 
plural  marriages  was  as  far  from  any  thought  of  the  real  "  author '.' 
of  the  doctrinal  part  of  that  book  as  it  was  from  the  mind  of  Rig- 
don's  fellow-Disciples  in  Ohio  at  the  time.  The  declarations  on 
the  subject  in  the  Mormon  Bible  are  so  worded  that  they  distinctly 
forbid  any  following  of  the  example  of  Old  Testament   leaders 

1  Pamphlets  Nos.  16  and  46  published  by  the  Reorganized  Church. 

2  "Elder  W.  W.  Phelps  said  in  Salt  Lake  Tabernacle  in  1862  that  while  Joseph 
was  translating  the  Book  of  Abraham  in  Kirtland,  Ohio,  in  1835,  fr°m  the  papyrus  found 
with  the  Egyptian  mummies,  the  Prophet  became  impressed  with  the  idea  that  polygamy 
would  yet  become  an  institution  of  the  Mormon  Church.  Brigham  Young  was  present, 
and  was  much  annoyed  at  the  statement  made  by  Phelps;  but  it  is  highly  probable  that 
it  was  the  real  secret  that  the  latter  then  divulged."  —  "  Rocky  Mountain  Saints,"  p.  182. 

272 


THE   INSTITUTION   OF   POLYGAMY  273 

like  David  and  Solomon.     In  the  Book  of  Jacob  ii.  24-28,  we  find 
these  commands :  — 

"  Behold,  David  and  Solomon  truly  had  many  wives  and  concubines,  which 
thing  was  abominable  before  me  saith  the  Lord  ;  wherefore,  thus  saith  the  Lord, 
I  have  led  this  people  forth  out  of  the  land  of  Jerusalem,  by  the  power  of  mine 
arm,  that  I  might  raise  up  unto  me  a  righteous  branch  from  the  fruit  of  the  loins 
of  Joseph. 

"  Wherefore,  I,  the  Lord  God,  will  not  suffer  that  this  people  shall  do  like 
unto  them  of  old.  Wherefore  my  brethren,  hear  me,  and  hearken  to  the 
word  of  the  Lord ;  for  there  shall  not  any  man  among  you  hath  save  it  be  one 
wife  ;  and  concubines  he  shall  have  none ;  for  I,  the  Lord  God,  delighteth  in  the 
chastity  of  women.  And  whoredoms  are  an  abomination  before  me;  thus  saith 
the  Lord  of  Hosts. " 

The  same  view  is  expressed  in  the  Book  of  Mosiah,  where, 
among  the  sins  of  King  Noah,  it  is  mentioned  that  "  he  spent  his 
time  in  riotous  living  with  his  wives  and  concubines,"  and  in  the 
Book  of  Ether  x.  5,  where  it  is  said  that  "  Riplakish  did  not  do 
that  which  was  right  in  the  sight  of  the  Lord,  for  he  did  have 
many  wives  and  concubines." 

Smith,  at  the  beginning  of  his  career  as  a  prophet,  inculcated 
the  same  views  on  this  subject  in  his  "  revelations."  Thus,  in  the 
one  dated  at  Kirtland,  February  9,  183 1,  it  was  commanded  (Sec. 
42),  "  Thou  shalt  love  thy  wife  with  all  thy  heart,  and  shalt  cleave 
unto  her  and  none  else ;  and  he  that  looketh  upon  a  woman  to 
lust  after  her  shall  deny  the  faith,  and  shall  not  have  the  spirit, 
and  if  he  repents  not  he  shall  be  cast  out."  In  another  "reve- 
lation," dated  the  following  month  (Sec.  49),  it  was  declared, 
"Wherefore  it  is  lawful  that  he  should  have  one  wife,  and  they 
twain  shall  be  one  flesh,  and  all  this  that  the  earth  might  answer 
the  end  of  its  creation."1  These  teachings  may  be  with  justness 
attributed  to  Rigdon,  and  we  shall  see  on  how  little  ground  rests 
a  carelessly  made  charge  that  he  was  the  originator  of  the  "  spir- 
itual wife  "  notion. 

That  there  was  a  loosening  of  the  views  regarding  the  marriage 
tie  almost  as  soon  as  Smith  began  his  reign  at  Kirtland  can  be 
shown  on  abundant  proof.  Booth  in  one  of  his  letters  said,  "  It 
has  been  made  known  to  one  who  has  left  his  wife  in  New  York 

1  "  It  is  the  strongest  proof  of  the  firm  hold  of  a  party,  whether  religious  or  politi- 
cal, upon  the  public  mind,  when  it  may  offend  with  impunity  against  its  own  primary 
principles."  —  Milman,  "  History  of  Christianity." 


274  THE    STORY    OF   THE   MORMONS 

State,  that  he  is  entirely  free  from  his  wife,  and  he  is  at  pleasure 
to  take  him  a  wife  from  among  the  Lamanites  "  (Indians).1  That 
reports  of  polygamous  practices  among  the  Mormons  while  they 
were  in  Ohio  were  current  was  conceded  in  the  section  on  mar- 
riage, inserted  in  the  Kirtland  edition  of  the  "  Book  of  Doctrine 
and  Covenants"  — "  Inasmuch  as  this  Church  of  Christ  has  been 
reproached  with  the  crime  of  fornication  and  polygamy,"  etc. ;  and 
is  further  proved  by  Smith's  denial  in  the  Elders  Journal?  and  by 
the  declaration  of  the  Presidents  of  the  Seventies,  withholding 
fellowship  with  any  elder  "  who  is  guilty  of  polygamy." 

Of  the  enmity  of  the  higher  powers  toward  transgressors  of 
the  law  of  morality  of  this  time,  we  find  an  amusing  (some  will  say 
shocking)  mention  in  Smith's  "revelation"  of  October  25,  183 1 
(Sec.  66).  This  "  revelation"  (announced  as  the  words  of  "  the 
Lord  your  Redeemer,  the  Saviour  of  the  world  ")  was  addressed 
to  W.  E.  McLellin  (who  was  soon  after  "  rebuked  "  by  the  prophet 
for  attempting  to  have  a  "  revelation  "  on  his  own  account).  It 
declared  that  McLellin  was  "  blessed  for  receiving  mine  everlasting 
covenant,"  directed  him  to  go  forth  and  preach,  gave  him  power 
to  heal  the  sick,  and  then  added,  "  Commit  no  adultery,  a  tempta- 
tion with  which  thou  hast  been  troubled."  Could  religious  bouffe 
go  to  greater  lengths  ? 

Testimony  as  to  the  liberal  Mormon  view  of  the  marriage  rela- 
tion while  the  church  was  in  Missouri  is  found  in  the  case  of  one 
Lyon,  reported  by  Smith  on  page  148  of  Vol.  XVI  of  the  Mil- 
lennial Star.  Lyon  was  the  presiding  high  priest  of  one  of  the 
outlying  branches  of  the  church.  Desiring  to  marry  a  Mrs.  Jack- 
son, whose  husband  was  absent  in  the  East,  Lyon  announced  a 
"  revelation,"  ordering  the  marriage  to  take  place,  telling  her  that 
he  knew  by  revelation  that  her  husband  was  dead.  He  gained  her 
consent  in  this  way,  but,  before  the  ceremony  was  performed,  Jack- 
son returned  home,  and,  learning  of  Lyon's  conduct,  he  had  him 
brought  before  the  authorities  for  trial.  The  high  priest  was 
found  guilty  enough  to  be  deposed  from  his  office,  but  not  from  his 
church  membership. 

There  is  abundant  testimony  from  Mormon  sources  to  show  / 
that  the  doctrine  of  polygamy,  with  the  "spiritual  wife"  adjunct,/ 
was  practised    in    Nauvoo  for  some  time   before   Joseph  Smith's 

1  Howe's  "  Mormonism  Unveiled."  2  p.  157,  ante. 


THE    INSTITUTION    OF   POLYGAMY  275 

death.  A  very  orthodox  Mormon  witness  on  this  point  is  Eliza  R. 
Snow.  In  her  biography  of  her  brother,  Lorenzo  Snow,1  the 
recent  head  of  the  church,  she  gives  this  account  of  her  connection 
with  polygamy :  — 

"While  my  brother  was  absent  on  this  [his  first]  mission  to  Europe  [1840- 
1843],  changes  had  taken  place  with  me,  one  of  eternal  import,  of  which  I  sup- 
posed him  to  be  entirely  ignorant.  The  Prophet  Joseph  had  taught  me  the 
principle  of  plural  or  celestial  marriage,  and  I  was  married  to  him  for  time  and 
eternity.  In  consequence  of  the  ignorance  of  most  of  the  Saints,  as  well  as 
people  of  the  world,  on  this  subject,  it  was  not  mentioned,  only  privately  between 
the  few  whose  minds  were  enlightened  on  the  subject.  Not  knowing  how  my 
brother  [he  returned  on  April  12,  1843]  would  receive  it,  I  did  not  feel  at  liberty, 
and  did  not  wish  to  assume  the  responsibility,  of  instructing  him  in  the  principle 
of  plural  marriage.  ...  I  informed  my  husband  [the  prophet]  of  the  situation, 
and  requested  him  to  open  the  subject  to  my  brother.  A  favorable  opportunity 
soon  presented,  and,  seated  together  on  the  bank  of  the  Mississippi  River,  they 
had  a  most  interesting  conversation.  The  prophet  afterward  told  me  he  found 
that  my  brother's  mind  had  been  previously  enlightened  on  the  subject  in  ques- 
tion. That  Comforter  which  Jesus  says  shall  *  lead  unto  all  truth1  had  penetrated 
his  understanding,  and,  while  in  England,  had  given  him  an  intimation  of  what 
at  that  time  was  to  many  a  secret.     This  was  the  result  of  living  near  the  Lord. 

"  It  was  at  the  private  interview  referred  to  above  that  the  Prophet  Joseph 
unbosomed  his  heart,  and  described  the  trying  ordeal  he  experienced  in  over- 
coming the  repugnance  of  his  feelings,  the  natural  result  of  the  force  of  education 
and  social  custom,  relative  to  the  introduction  of  plural  marriage.  He  knew  the 
voice  of  God  —  he  knew  the  command  of  the  Almighty  to  him  was  to  go  forward 
—  to  set  the  example  and  establish  celestial  plural  marriage.  .  .  .  Yet  the 
prophet  hesitated  and  deferred  from  time  to  time,  until  an  angel  of  God  stood  by 
him  with  a  drawn  sword,  and  told  him  that,  unless  he  moved  forward  and  estab- 
lished plural  marriage,  his  priesthood  would  be  taken  from  him  and  he  should  be 
destroyed.     This  testimony  he  not  only  bore  to  my  brother,  but  also  to  others."2 

1  "This  biography  and  autobiography  of  my  brother  Lorenzo  Snow  has  been  writ- 
ten as  a  tribute  of  sisterly  affection  for  him,  and  as  a  token  of  sincere  respect  to  his 
family.  It  is  designed  to  be  handed  down  in  lineal  descent,  from  generation  to  genera- 
tion,—  to  be  preserved  as  a  family  memorial."  —  Extract  from  the  preface. 

2  "  Biography  of  Lorenzo  Snow  "  (18S4),  pp.  68-70.  Young  married  some  of  Smith's 
spiritual  widows  after  the  prophet's  death,  and  four  of  them,  including  Eliza  Snow, 
appear  in  Crockwell's  illustrated  "Biographies  of  Young's  Wives,"  published  in  Utah. 

Catherine  Lewis,  who,  after  passing  two  years  with  the  Mormons,  escaped  from 
Nauvoo,  after  taking  the  preliminary  degrees  of  the  endowment,  says:  "The  Twelve 
took  Joseph's  wives  after  his  death.  Kimball  and  Young  took  most  of  them;  the 
daughter  of  Kimball  was  one  of  Joseph's  wives.  I  heard  her  say  to  her  mother:  'I  will 
never  be  sealed  to  my  father  [meaning  as  a  wife],  and  I  would  never  have  been  sealed 
[married]  to  Joseph  had  I  known  it  was  anything  more  than  ceremony.  I  was  young, 
and  they  deceived  me  by  saying  the  salvation  of  our  whole  family  depended  on  it.' 
The  Apostles  said  they  only  took  Joseph's  wives  to  raise  up  children,  carry  them  through 


\J 


276  THE    STORY   OF   THE    MORMONS 

Smith's  versatility  as  a  fabricator  seems  to  give  him  a  leading 
place  in  that  respect  in  the  record  of  mankind.  Snow  says  that 
he  asked  the  prophet  to  set  him  right  if  he  should  see  him  indulg- 
ing in  any  practice  that  might  lead  him  astray,  and  the  prophet 
assured  him  that  he  would  never  be  guilty  of  any  serious  error. 
"  It  was  one  of  Snow's  peculiarities,"  observes  his  sister,  "  to  do 
nothing  by  halves  " ;  and  he  exemplified  this  in  this  instance  by 
!  having  two  wives  "sealed"  to  him  at  the  same  time  in  1845, 
adding  two  more  very  soon  afterward,  and  another  in  1848.  "It 
was  distinctly  understood,"  says  his  sister,  "  and  agreed  between 
them,  that  their  marriage  relations  should  not,  for  the  time  being, 
be  divulged  to  the  world." 

The  testimony  of  John  D.  Lee  in  regard  to  the  practice  of 
polygamy  in  Illinois  is  very  circumstantial,  and  Lee  was  a  con- 
scientious polygamist  to  the  day  of  his  death.  He  says1  that  he 
was  directed  in  this  matter  by  principle  and  not  by  passion,  and 
goes  on  to  explain  :  — 

"  In  those  days  I  did  not  always  make  due  allowance  for  the  failings  of  the 
weaker  vessels.  I  then  expected  perfection  in  all  women.  I  know  now  that  I 
was  foolish  in  looking  for  that  in  anything  human.  I  have,  for  slight  offences, 
turned  away  good-meaning  young  women  that  had  been  sealed  to  me,  and 
refused  to  hear  their  excuses,  but  sent  them  away  broken-hearted.  In  this  I  did 
wrong.  I  have  regretted  the  same  in  sorrow  for  many  years.  .  .  .  Should  my 
history  ever  fall  into  the  hands  of  Emeline  Woolsey  or  Polly  Ann  Workman,  I 
wish  them  to  know  that,  with  my  last  breath,  I  asked  God  to  pardon  me  the 
wrong  I  did  them,  when  I  drove  them  from  me,  poor  young  girls  as  they  were." 

Lee  says  that  in  the  winter  of  1 843-1 844  Smith  set  one  Sidney 
Hay  Jacobs  to  writing  a  pamphlet  giving  selections  from  the 
Scriptures  bearing  on  the  practice  of  polygamy  and  advocating 
that  doctrine.  The  appearance  of  this  pamphlet  created  so  much 
unfavorable  comment  (even  Hyrum  Smith  denouncing  it  "  as  from 
beneath  ")  that  Joseph  deemed  it  best  to  condemn  it  in  the  Wasp, 
although  men  in  his  confidence  were  busy  advocating  its  teachings. 

The  "  revelation  "  sanctioning  plural  marriages  is  dated  July  12, 
1843,  and  Lee  says  that  Smith  "dared  not  proclaim  it  publicly," 
but  taught  it  "  confidentially,"  urging  his  followers  "  to  surrender 
themselves  to  God  "  for  their  salvation  ;  and  "in  the  winter  of  1845, 

to  the  next  world,  and  there  deliver  them  up  to  him;   by  so  doing  they  would  gain  his 
approbation."  —  "Narrative  of  Some  of  the  Proceedings  of  the  Mormons." 
1  "  Mormonism  Unveiled,"  p.  200 


THE   INSTITUTION   OF   POLYGAMY  277 

meetings  were  held  all  over  the  city  of  Nauvoo,  and  the  spirit  of 
Elijah  was  taught  in  the  different  families,  as  a  foundation  to  the 
order  of  celestial  marriage,  as  well  as  the  law  of  adoption."  1  The 
Saints  were  also  taught  that  Gentiles  had  no  right  to  perform  the 
marriage  ceremony,  and  that  their  former  marriage  relations  were 
invalid,  and  that  they  could  be  "  sealed  "  to  new  wives  under  the 
authority  of  the  church. 

Lee  gives  a  complete  record  of  his  plural  marriages,  which  is 
interesting,  showing  how  the  business  was  conducted  at  the  start. 
His  second  wife,  the  daughter  of  a  wealthy  farmer  near  Quincy,  , 
Illinois,  was  "sealed"  to  him  in  Nauvoo  in  1845,  after  she  had 
been  an  inmate  of  his  house  for  three  months.  His  third  and 
fourth  wives  were  "sealed"  to  him  soon  after,  but  Young  took  a 
fancy  to  wife  No.  3  (who  had  borne  Lee  a  son),  and,  after 
much  persuasion,  she  was  "  sealed  "  to  Young.  At  this  same  "  seal- 
ing "  Lee  took  wife  No.  4,  a  girl  whom  he  had  baptized  in 
Tennessee.  In  the  spring  of  1845  two  sisters  of  his  first  wife  and 
their  mother  were  "  sealed  "  to  him ;  he  married  the  mother,  he 
says,  "for  the  salvation  of  her  eternal  state."  At  the  completion 
of  the  Nauvoo  Temple  he  took  three  more  wives.  At  Council 
Bluffs,  in  1847,  Brigham  Young  "sealed"  him  to  three  more,  two 
of  them  sisters,  in  one  night,  and  he  secured  the  fourteenth  soon 
after,  the  fifteenth  in  185 1,  the  sixteenth  in  1856,  the  seventeenth 
in  1858  ("a  dashing  young  bride"),  the  eighteenth  in  1859,  and 
the  nineteenth  and  last  in  Salt  Lake  City.  He  says  he  claimed 
"  only  eighteen  true  wives,"  as  he  married  Mrs.  Woolsey  "  for  her 
soul's  sake,  and  she  was  nearly  sixty  years  old."  By  these  wives 
he  had  sixty-four  children,  of  whom  fifty-four  were  living  when 
his  book  was  written. 

Ebenezer  Robinson,  explaining  in  the  Return  a  statement 
signed  by  him  and  his  wife  in  October,  1842,  to  offset  Bennett's 
charges,  in  which  they  declared  that  they  "  knew  of  no  other  form 
of  marriage  ceremony  "  except  the  one  in  the  "  Book  of  Doctrine 
and  Covenants,"  said  that  this  statement  was  then  true,  as  the 
heads  of  the  church  had  not  yet  taught  the  new  system  to  others. 
But  they  had  heard  it  talked  of,  and  the  prophet's  brother,  Don 
Carlos,  in  June,  1841,  had  said  to  Robinson,  "Any  man  who  will 
teach  and  practise  spiritual  wifery  will  go  to  hell,  no  matter  if  it  is 

1  "  Mormonism  Unveiled,"  p.  165. 


278  THE   STORY   OF   THE    MORMONS 

my  brother  Joseph."  Hyrum  Smith,  who  first  opposed  the  doc- 
trine, went  to  Robinson's  house  in  December,  1843,  and  taught  the 
system  to  him  and  his  wife.  Robinson  was  told  of  the  "  revela- 
tion "  to  Joseph  a  few  days  after  its  date,  and  just  as  he  was  leav- 
ing Nauvoo  on  a  mission  to  New  York.  He,  Law,  and  William 
Marks  opposed  the  innovation.  He  continues:  "We  returned 
home  from  that  mission  the  latter  part  of  November,  1843.  Soon 
after  our  return,  I  was  told  that  when  we  were  gone  the  '  revela- 
tion'  was  presented  to  and  read  in  the  High  Council  in  Nauvoo. 
three  of  the  members  of  which  refused  to  accept  it  as  from  the  Lord, 
President  Marks,  Cowles,  and  Counsellor  Leonard  Soby."  Cowles 
at  once  resigned  from  the  High  Council  and  the  Presidency  of  the 
church  at  Nauvoo,  and  was  looked  on  as  a  seceder. 

Robinson  gives  convincing  testimony  that,  as  early  as  1843, 
the  ceremonies  of  the  Endowment  House  were  performed  in  Nau- 
voo by  a  secret  organization  called  "The  Holy  Order,"  and  says 
that  in  June,  1844,  ne  saw  John  Taylor  clad  in  an  endowment  robe. 
He  quotes  a  letter  to  himself  from  Orson  Hyde,  dated  September  19, 
1844,  in  which  Hyde  refers  guardedly  to  the  new  revelation  and 
the  "  Holy  Order  "  as  "  the  charge  which  the  prophet  gave  us," 
adding,  "  and  we  know  that  Elder  Rigdon  does  not  know  what  it 
was."  1 

We  may  find  the  following  references  to  this  subject  in  Smith's 
diary :  — 

"April  29,  1842.  The  Lord  makes  manifest  to  me  many  things  which  it  is 
not  wisdom  for  me  to  make  public  until  others  can  witness  the  proof  of  them." 

"  May  1 .  I  preached  in  the  grove  on  the  Keys  of  the  Kingdom,  etc.  The 
Keys  are  certain  signs  and  words  by  which  the  false  spirits  and  personages  can  be 
detected  from  true,  and  which  cannot  be  revealed  to  the  Elders  till  the  Temple  is 
completed." 

"  May  4.  I  spent  the  day  in  the  upper  part  of  my  store  ...  in  council  with 
(Hyrum,  Brigham  Young  and  others)  instructing  them  in  the  principles  and  order 
of  the  Priesthood,  attending  to  washings,  anointings,  endowments.  .  .  .  The 
communications  I  made  to  this  Council  were  of  things  spiritual,  and  to  be  received 
only  by  the  spiritually  minded ;  and  there  was  nothing  made  known  to  these  men 
but  what  will  be  made  known  to  all  the  Saints  of  the  last  days  as  soon  as  they  are 
prepared  to  receive,  and  a  proper  place  is  prepared  to  communicate  them."  2 

In  one  of  Smith's  dissertations,  which  are  inserted  here  and 
there  in  his  diary,  is  the  following  under  date  of  August,  1842  :  — 

1  The  Return,  Vol.  II,  p.  252.  2  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XIX,  pp.  390-393. 


THE   INSTITUTION   OF   POLYGAMY  279 

"  If  we  seek  first  the  kingdom  of  God,  all  good  things  will  be  added.  So  with 
Solomon.  First  he  asked  wisdom  and  God  gave  it  to  him,  and  with  it  every  de- 
sire of  his  heart,  even  things  which  might  be  considered  abominable  to  all  who 
understand  the  order  of  heaven  only  in  part,  but  which  in  reality  were  right, 
because  God  gave  and  sanctioned  them  by  special  revelation." 1 

While  the  Mormon  leaders,  Lorenzo  Snow  and  others,  were  in 
the  Utah  penitentiary  after  conviction  under  the  Edmunds  anti- 
polygamy  law,  refusing  pardons  on  condition  that  they  would  give 
up  the  practice  of  polygamy,  the  Deseret  News  of  May  20,  1886, 
printed  an  affidavit  made  on  February  16,  1874,  at  the  request 
of  Joseph  F.  Smith,  by  William  Clayton,  who  was  a  clerk  in 
the  prophet's  office  in  Nauvoo  and  temple  recorder,  to  show  the 
world  that  "  the  martyred  prophet  is  responsible  to  God  and  the 
world  for  this  doctrine."  The  affidavit  recites  that  while  Clayton 
and  the  prophet  were  taking  a  walk,  in  February,  1843,  Smith  first 
broached  to  him  the  subject  of  plural  marriages,  and  told  him  that 
the  doctrine  was  right  in  the  sight  of  God,  adding,  "  It  is  your 
privilege  to  have  all  the  wives  you  want."  He  gives  the  names  of 
a  number  of  the  wives  whom  Smith  married  at  this  time,  adding 
that  his  wife  Emma  "  was  cognizant  of  the  fact  of  some,  if  not  all, 
of  these  being  his  wives,  and  she  generally  treated  them  very 
kindly."  He  says  that  on  July  12,  1843,  Hyrum  offered  to  read 
the  "  revelation  "  to  Emma  if  the  prophet  would  write  it  out,  say- 
ing, "  I  believe  I  can  convince  her  of  its  truth,  and  you  will  here- 
after have  peace."  Joseph  smiled,  and  remarked,  "  You  do  not 
know  Emma  as  well  as  I  do,"  but  he  thereupon  dictated  the  "reve- 
lation "  and  Clayton  wrote  it  down.  An  examination  of  its  text 
will  show  how  largely  it  was  devoted  to  Emma's  subjugation. 
When  Hyrum  returned  from  reading  it  to  the  prophet's  lawful 
wife,  he  said  that  "he  had  never  received  a  more  severe  talking  to 
in  his  life  ;  that  Emma  was  very  bitter  and  full  of  resentment  and 
anger."  Joseph  repeated  his  remark  that  his  brother  did  not  know 
Emma  as  well  as  he  did,  and,  putting  the  "  revelation  "  into  his 
pocket,  they  went  out.2 

1  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XIX,  p.  774. 

2  Jenson's  "  Historical  Record,"  Vol.  VI,  pp.  233-234,  gives  the  names  of  twenty- 
seven  women  who,  "  besides  a  few  others  about  whom  we  have  been  unable  to  get  all 
the  necessary  information,  were  sealed  to  the  Prophet  Joseph  during  the  last  three  years 
of  his  life." 

"At  the  present  time,"  says  Stenhouse  ("Rocky  Mountain  Saints"),  p.  185,  "there 
are  probably  about  a  dozen  sisters  in  Utah  who  proudly  acknowledge  themselves  to  be 


28o  THE   STORY   OF  THE   MORMONS 

At  the  conference  in  Salt  Lake  City  on  August  28,  1852,  at 
which  the  first  public  announcement  of  the  revelation  was  made, 
Brigham  Young  said  in  the  course  of  his  remarks  :  "  Though  that 
doctrine  has  not  been  preached  by  the  Elders,  this  people  have 
believed  in  it  for  many  years.1  The  original  copy  of  this  revela- 
tion was  burned  up.  William  Clayton  was  the  man  who  wrote  it 
from  the  mouth  of  the  Prophet.  In  the  meantime  it  was  in  Bishop 
Whitney's  possession.  He  wished  the  privilege  to  copy  it,  which 
brother  Joseph  granted.  Sister  Emma  burnt  the  original."  The 
"  revelation,"  he  added,  had  been  locked  up  for  years  in  his  desk, 
on  which  he  had  a  patent  lock.2 

Further  proof  is  not  needed  to  show  that  this  doctrine  was  the 
offspring  of  Joseph  Smith,  and  that  its  original  object  was  to  grant 
him  unrestricted  indulgence  of  his  passions. 

Justice  to  Sidney  Rigdon  requires  that  his  memory  should  be 
cleared  of  the  charge,  which  has  been  made  by  more  than  one 
writer,  that  the  spiritual  wife  doctrine  was  of  his  invention.  There 
is  the  strongest  evidence  to  show  that  it  was  Smith's  knowledge 
that  he  could  not  win  Rigdon  over  to  polygamy  which  made  the 
prophet  so  bitter  against  his  old  counsellor,  and  that  it  was  Rig- 

the  « wives  of  Joseph,'  and  how  many  others  there  may  be  who  held  that  relationship 
'no  man  knoweth.' " 

1  As  evidence  that  polygamy  was  not  countenanced  by  Smith  and  his  associates  in 
Nauvoo,  there  has  been  cited  a  notice  in  the  Times  and  Seasons  of  February,  1844, 
signed  by  Joseph  and  Hyrum  Smith,  cutting  off  an  elder  named  Brown  for  preaching 
"  polygamy  and  other  false  and  corrupt  doctrines,"  and  a  letter  of  Hyrum,  dated  March 
15,  1844,  threatening  to  deprive  of  his  license  and  membership  any  elder  who  preached 
"  that  a  man  having  a  certain  priesthood  may  have  as  many  wives  as  he  pleases."  The 
Deseret  News  of  May  20,  1886,  noticing  these  and  other  early  denials,  justifies  the  false- 
hoods, saying  that  "  Jesus  enjoined  his  Disciples  on  several  occasions  to  keep  to  themselves 
principles  that  he  made  known  to  them,"  that  the  "Book  of  Doctrine  and  Covenants" 
gave  the  same  instruction,  and  that  the  elders,  as  the  "  revelation  "  was  not  yet  promul- 
gated, "were  justified  in  denying  those  imputations,  and  at  the  same  time  avoiding  the 
avowal  of  such  doctrines  as  were  not  yet  intended  for  this  world."  P.  P.  Pratt  flatly 
denied,  in  England,  in  1846,  that  any  such  doctrine  was  known  or  practised  by  the 
Saints,  and  John  Taylor  (afterward  the  head  of  the  church),  in  a  discussion  in  France 
in  July,  1850,  declared  that  "these  things  are  too  outrageous  to  admit  of  belief."  The 
latter  false  statements  would  be  covered  by  the  excuse  of  the  Deseret  News. 

2  Deseret  News,  extra,  September  14,  1852.  Young  declared  in  a  sermon  in  Salt 
Lake  City  in  July,  1855,  that  he  was  among  the  doubters  when  the  prophet  revealed  the 
new  doctrine,  saying :  "  It  was  the  first  time  in  my  life  that  I  desired  the  grave,  and  I 
could  hardly  get  over  it  for  a  long  time.  .  .  .  And  I  have  had  to  examine  myself  from 
that  day  to  this,  and  watch  my  faith  and  carefully  meditate,  lest  I  should  be  found 
desiring  the  grave  more  than  I  ought  to."  His  examinations  proved  eminently  suc- 
cessful. 


THE   INSTITUTION   OF   POLYGAMY  28 1 

don's  opposition  to  the  new  doctrine  that  made  Young  so  deter- 
mined to  drive  him  out  of  church  after  the  prophet's  death. 

When  Rigdon  returned  to  Pittsburg,  Pennsylvania,  to  establish 
his  own  Mormon  church  there,  he  began  in  October,  1844,  the  pub- 
lication of  a  revived  Latter-Day  Saints'  Messenger  and  Advocate. 
Stating  "  the  greater  cause  "  of  the  opposition  of  the  leaders  of 
Nauvoo  to  him,  in  an  editorial,  he  said  :  — 

"Know  then  that  the  so-called  Twelve  Apostles  at  Nauvoo  are  now  teach- 
ing the  doctrine  of  what  is  called  Spiritual  Wives ;  that  a  man  may  have  more 
wives  than  one ;  and  they  are  not  only  teaching  it,  but  practising  it,  and  this  doc- 
trine is  spreading  alarmingly  through  that  apostate  branch  of  the  church  of  Latter- 
Day  Saints.  Their  greatest  objection  to  us  was  our  opposition  to  this  doctrine, 
knowing,  as  they  did,  that  we  had  got  the  fact  in  possession.  It  created  alarm, 
great  alarm ;  every  effort  was  made  while  we  were  there  to  effect  something  that 
might  screen  them  from  the  consequence  of  exposure.  .  .  . 

"  This  doctrine  of  a  man  having  more  wives  than  one  is  the  cause  which  has 
induced  these  men  to  put  at  defiance  the  ecclesiastical  arrangements  of  the  church, 
and,  what  is  equally  criminal,  to  do  despite  unto  the  moral  excellence  of  the  doc- 
trine and  covenants  of  the  church,  setting  up  an  order  of  things  of  their  own,  in 
violation  of  all  the  rules  and  regulations  known  to  the  Saints.1' 

In  the  same  editorial  Rigdon  prints  a  statement  by  a  gentle- 
man who  was  at  Nauvoo  at  the  time,  and  for  whose  veracity  he 
vouches,  which  said,  "  It  was  said  to  me  by  many  that  they  had  no 
objection  to  Elder  Rigdon  but  his  opposition  to  the  spiritual  wife 
system." 

Benjamin  Winchester,  who  was  one  of  the  earliest  missionaries 
sent  out  from  Kirtland,  adds  this  testimony  in  a  letter  to  Elder 
John  Hardy  of  Boston,  Massachusetts,  whose  trial  in  1844  for 
opposing  the  spiritual  wife  doctrine  occasioned  wide  comment :  — 

"As  regards  the  trial  of  Elder  Rigdon  at  Nauvoo,  it  was  a  forced  affair,  got 
up  by  the  Twelve  to  get  him  out  of  their  way,  that  they  might  the  better  arrogate 
to  themselves  higher  authority  than  they  ever  had,  or  anybody  ever  dreamed  they 
would  have  ;  and  also  (as  they  perhaps  hope)  to  prevent  a  complete  expose  of  the 
spiritual  wife  system,  which  they  knew  would  deeply  implicate  themselves." 


' 


CHAPTER   XI 

PUBLIC   ANNOUNCEMENT   OF  THE   DOCTRINE   OF   POLYGAMY 

Although  there  was  practically  no  concealment  of  the  prac- 
tice of  polygamy  by  the  Mormons  resident  in  Utah  after  their 
arrival  there,  it  was  not  until  five  years  from  that  date  that  open 
announcement  was  made  by  the  church  of  the  important  "  revela- 
tion." This  "revelation"  constitutes  Sec.  132  of  the  modern 
edition  of  the  "  Book  of  Doctrine  and  Covenants,"  and  bears  this 
heading :  "  Revelation  on  the  Eternity  of  the  Marriage  Covenant, 
including  Plurality  of  Wives.  Given  through  Joseph,  the  Seer,  in 
Nauvoo,  Hancock  County,  Illinois,  July  12,  1843."  All  its  essen- 
tial parts  are  as  follows  :  — 

"  Verily,  thus  saith  the  Lord  unto  you,  my  servant  Joseph,  that  inasmuch  as 
you  have  inquired  of  my  hand,  to  know  and  understand  wherein  I,  the  Lord,  justi- 
fied my  servants  Abraham,  Isaac  and  Jacob ;  as  also  Moses,  David  and  Solomon, 
my  servants,  as  touching  the  principle  and  doctrine  of  their  having  many  wives 
and  concubines : 

"  Behold  !  and  lo,  I  am  the  Lord  thy  God,  and  will  answer  thee  as  touching 
this  matter : 

"  Therefore,  prepare  thy  heart  to  receive  and  obey  the  instructions  which  I 
am  about  to  give  unto  you ;  for  all  those  who  have  this  law  revealed  unto  them 
must  obey  the  same  ; 

"  For  behold  !  I  reveal  unto  you  a  new  and  an  everlasting  covenant ;  and  if 
ye  abide  not  that  covenant,  then  are  ye  damned ;  for  no  one  can  reject  this  cove- 
nant, and  be  permitted  to  enter  into  my  glory ; 

"  For  all  who  will  have  a  blessing  at  my  hands  shall  abide  the  law  which 
was  appointed  for  that  blessing,  and  the  conditions  thereof,  as  were  instituted 
from  before  the  foundation  of  the  world  : 

"  And  as  pertaining  to  the  new  and  everlasting  covenant,  it  was  instituted  for 
the  fullness  of  my  glory ;  and  he  that  receiveth  a  fullness  thereof,  must  and  shall 
abide  the  law,  or  he  shall  be  damned,  saith  the  Lord  God. 

"  And  verily  I  say  unto  you,  that  the  conditions  of  this  law  are  these :  All 
covenants,  contracts,  bonds,  obligations,  oaths,  vows,  performances,  connections, 
associations,  or  expectations,  that  are  not  made,  and  entered  into,  and  sealed,  by 
the  Holy  Spirit  of  promise,  of  him  who  is  anointed,  both  as  well  for  time  and  for 
all  eternity,  and  that  too  most  holy,  by  revelation  and  commandment  through 

282 


THE   DOCTRINE   OF   POLYGAMY  283 

the  medium  of  mine  anointed,  whom  I  have  appointed  on  the  earth  to  hold  this 
power  (and  I  have  appointed  unto  my  servant  Joseph  to  hold  this  power  in  the 
last  days,  and  there  is  never  but  one  on  the  earth  at  a  time,  on  whom  this  power 
and  the  keys  of  this  Priesthood  are  conferred),  are  of  no  efficacy,  virtue,  or  force, 
in  and  after  the  resurrection  from  the  dead ;  for  all  contracts  that  are  not  made 
unto  this  end,  have  an  end  when  men  are  dead.  .  .  . 

"  I  am  the  Lord  thy  God,  and  I  give  unto  you  this  commandment,  that  no 
man  shall  come  unto  the  Father  but  by  me,  or  by  my  word,  which  is  my  law, 
saith  the  Lord ;  .  .  . 

"  Therefore,  if  a  man  marry  him  a  wife  in  the  world,  and  he  marry  her  not 
by  me,  nor  by  my  word ;  and  he  covenant  with  her  so  long  as  he  is  in  the  world, 
and  she  with  him,  their  covenant  and  marriage  are  not  of  force  when  they  are 
dead,  and  when  they  are  out  of  the  world  ;  therefore,  they  are  not  bound  by  any 
law  when  they  are  out  of  the  world  ; 

"Therefore,  when  they  are  out  of  the  world,  they  neither  marry,  nor  are 
given  in  marriage ;  but  are  appointed  angels  in  heaven,  which  angels  are  minis- 
tering servants,  to  minister  for  those  who  are  worthy  of  a  far  more,  and  an  ex- 
ceeding, and  an  eternal  weight  of  glory ; 

"  For  these  angels  did  not  abide  my  law,  therefore  they  cannot  be  enlarged, 
but  remain  separately  and  singly,  without  exaltation,  in  their  saved  condition,  to 
all  eternity,  and  from  henceforth  are  not  Gods,  but  are  angels  of  God,  for  ever 
and  ever. 

"  And  again,  verily  I  say  unto  you,  if  a  man  marry  a  wife,  and  make  a  cove- 
nant with  her  for  time  and  for  all  eternity,  if  that  covenant  is  not  by  me,  or  by  my 
word,  which  is  my  law,  and  is  not  sealed  by  the  Holy  Spirit  of  promise,  through 
him  whom  I  have  anointed,  and  appointed  unto  this  power — then  it  is  not  valid, 
neither  of  force  when  they  are  out  of  the  world,  because  they  are  not  joined  by 
me,  saith  the  Lord,  neither  by  my  word ;  when  they  are  out  of  the  world,  it  can- 
not be  received  there,  because  the  angels  and  the  Gods  are  appointed  there,  by 
whom  they  cannot  pass ;  they  cannot,  therefore,  inherit  my  glory,  for  my  house 
is  a  house  of  order,  saith  the  Lord  God. 

"  And  again,  verily  I  say  unto  you,  if  a  man  marry  a  wife  by  my  word,  which 
is  my  law,  and  by  the  new  and  everlasting  covenant,  and  it  is  sealed  unto  them  by 
the  Holy  Spirit  of  promise,  by  him  who  is  anointed,  unto  whom  I  have  appointed 
this  power,  and  the  keys  of  this  Priesthood ;  and  it  shall  be  said  unto  them,  ye 
shall  come  forth  in  the  first  resurrection  ;  and  if  it  be  after  the  first  resurrection, 
in  the  next  resurrection ;  and  shall  inherit  thrones,  kingdoms,  principalities,  and 
powers,  dominions,  all  heights  and  depths  —  then  shall  it  be  written  in  the  Lamb's 
Book  of  Life,  that  he  shall  commit  no  murder  whereby  to  shed  innocent  blood, 
and  if  ye  abide  in  my  covenant,  and  commit  no  murder  whereby  to  shed  innocent 
blood,  it  shall  be  done  unto  them  in  all  things  whatsoever  my  servant  hath  put  upon 
them,  in  time,  and  through  all  eternity,  and  shall  be  of  full  force  when  they  are 
out  of  the  world ;  and  they  shall  pass  by  the  angels,  and  the  Gods,  which  are  set 
there,  to  their  exaltation  and  glory  in  all  things,  as  hath  been  sealed  upon  their 
heads,  which  glory  shall  be  a  fullness  and  a  continuation  of  the  seeds  for  ever  and 
ever. 


284  THE    STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

"  Then  shall  they  be  Gods,  because  they  have  no  end ;  therefore  shall  they 
be  from  everlasting  to  everlasting,  because  they  continue ;  then  shall  they  be 
above  all,  because  all  things  are  subject  unto  them.  Then  shall  they  be  Gods, 
because  they  have  all  power,  and  the  angels  are  subject  unto  them. 

"  Verily,  verily  I  say  unto  you,  except  ye  abide  my  law,  ye  cannot  attain  to 
this  glory ;  .  .  . 

"  And  verily,  verily  I  say  unto  you,  that  whatsoever  you  seal  on  earth,  shall 
be  sealed  in  Heaven ;  and  whatsoever  you  bind  on  earth,  in  my  name,  and  by  my 
word,  saith  the  Lord,  it  shall  be  eternally  bound  in  the  heavens  ;  and  whosesoever 
sins  you  remit  on  earth  shall  be  remitted  eternally  in  the  heavens ;  and  whoseso- 
ever sins  you  retain  on  earth,  shall  be  retained  in  heaven. 

"  And  again,  verily  I  say,  whomsoever  you  bless,  I  will  bless,  and  whomso- 
ever you  curse,  I  will  curse,  saith  the  Lord ;  for  I,  the  Lord,  am  thy  God.   .   .  . 

"  Verily  I  say  unto  you,  a  commandment  I  give  unto  mine  handmaid,  Emma 
Smith,  your  wife,  whom  I  have  given  unto  you,  that  she  stay  herself,  and  partake 
not  of  that  which  I  commanded  you  to  offer  unto  her ;  for  I  did  it,  saith  the  Lord, 
to  prove  you  all,  as  I  did  Abraham ;  and  that  I  might  require  an  offering  at  your 
hand,  by  covenant  and  sacrifice. 

"And  let  mine  handmaid,  Emma  Smith,  receive  all  those  that  have  been 
given  unto  my  servant  Joseph,  and  who  are  virtuous  and  pure  before  me ;  and 
those  who  are  not  pure,  and  have  said  they  were  pure,  shall  be  destroyed,  saith  the 
Lord  God ; 

"  For  I  am  the  Lord,  thy  God,  and  ye  shall  obey  my  voice ;  and  I  give  unto 
my  servant  Joseph  that  he  shall  be  made  ruler  over  many  things,  for  he  hath  been 
faithful  over  a  few  things,  and  from  henceforth  I  will  strengthen  him. 

"And  I  command  mine  handmaid,  Emma  Smith,  to  abide  and  cleave  unto 
my  servant  Joseph,  and  to  none  else.  But  if  she  will  not  abide  this  command- 
ment, she  shall  be  destroyed,  saith  the  Lord ;  for  I  am  the  Lord  thy  God,  and 
will  destroy  her,  if  she  abide  not  in  my  law ; 

"  But  if  she  will  not  abide  this  commandment,  then  shall  my  servant  Joseph 
do  all  things  for  her,  even  as  he  hath  said ;  and  I  will  bless  him  and  multiply 
him,  and  give  unto  him  an  hundred  fold  in  this  world,  of  fathers  and  mothers, 
brothers  and  sisters,  houses  and  lands,  wives  and  children,  and  crowns  of  eternal 
lives  in  the  eternal  worlds. 

"  And  again,  verily  I  say,  let  mine  handmaid  forgive  my  servant  Joseph  his 
trespasses ;  and  then  shall  she  be  forgiven  her  trespasses,  wherein  she  has  tres- 
passed against  me ;  and  I,  the  Lord  thy  God,  will  bless  her,  and  multiply  her,  and 
make  her  heart  to  rejoice.  .  .  . 

"  And  again,  as  pertaining  to  the  law  of  the  priesthood,  if  any  man  espouse 
a  virgin,  and  desire  to  espouse  another,  and  the  first  give  her  consent ;  and  if  he 
espouse  the  second,  and  they  are  virgins,  and  have  vowed  to  no  other  man,  then 
is  he  justified ;  he  cannot  commit  adultery,  for  they  are  given  unto  him ;  for  he 
cannot  commit  adultery  with  that  that  belongeth  unto  him  and  to  no  one  else. 

"  And  if  he  have  ten  virgins  given  unto  him  by  this  law,  he  cannot  commit 
adultery,  for  they  belong  to  him,  and  they  are  given  unto  him,  therefore  is  he 
justified. 


THE   DOCTRINE  OF   POLYGAMY  285 

*  But  if  one  or  either  of  the  ten  virgins,  after  she  is  espoused,  shall  be  with 
another  man ;  she  has  committed  adultery,  and  shall  be  destroyed ;  for  they  are 
given  unto  him  to  multiply  and  replenish  the  earth,  according  to  my  command- 
ment, and  to  fulfill  the  promise  which  was  given  by  my  Father  before  the  founda- 
tion of  the  world ;  and  for  their  exaltation  in  the  eternal  worlds,  that  they  may 
bear  the  souls  of  men ;  for  herein  is  the  work  of  my  Father  continued,  that  he 
may  be  glorified. 

"  And  again,  verily,  verily  I  say  unto  you,  if  any  man  have  a  wife  who  holds 
the  keys  of  this  power,  and  he  teacheth  unto  her  the  law  of  my  priesthood,  as 
pertaining  to  these  things,  then  shall  she  believe,  and  administer  unto  him,  or  she 
shall  be  destroyed,  saith  the  Lord  your  God,  for  I  will  destroy  her ;  for  I  will 
magnify  my  name  upon  all  those  who  receive  and  abide  in  my  law. 

"  Therefore,  it  shall  be  lawful  in  me,  if  she  receive  not  this  law,  for  him  to 
receive  all  things,  whatsoever  I,  the  Lord  his  God,  will  give  unto  him,  because 
she  did  not  administer  unto  him  according  to  my  word ;  and  she  then  becomes 
the  transgressor ;  and  he  is  exempt  from  the  law  of  Sarah ;  who  administered 
unto  Abraham  according  to  the  law,  when  I  commanded  Abraham  to  take  Hagar 
to  wife. 

"And  now,  as  pertaining  to  this  law,  verily,  verily  I  say  unto  you,  I  will 
reveal  more  unto  you,  hereafter ;  therefore,  let  this  suffice  for  the  present.  Behold, 
I  am  Alpha  and  Omega.     Amen." 

This  jumble  of  doctrinal  and  family  commands  bears  internal 
evidence  of  the  truth  of  Clayton's  account  of  its  offhand  dictation 
with  a  view  to  its  immediate  submission  to  the  prophet's  wife,  who 
was  already  in  a  state  of  rebellion  because  of  his  infidelities. 

The  publication  of  the  "revelation"  was  made  at  a  Church 
Conference  which  opened  in  Salt  Lake  City  on  August  28,  1852, 
and  was  called  especially  to  select  elders  for  missionary  work.1 
At  the  beginning  of  the  second  day's  session  Orson  Pratt  an- 
nounced that,  unexpectedly,  he  had  been  called  on  to  address  the 
conference  on  the  subject  of  a  plurality  of  wives.  "  We  shall 
endeavor,"  he  said,  "to  set  forth  before  this  enlightened  assembly 
some  of  the  causes  why  the  Almighty  has  revealed  such  a  doc- 
trine, and  why  it  is  considered  a  part  and  portion  of  our  religious 
faith." 

He  then  took  up  the  attitude  of  the  church,  as  a  practiser  of 
this  doctrine,  toward  the  United  States  government,  saying:  — 

"  I  believe  that  they  will  not,  under  our  present  form  of  government  (I  mean 
the  government  of  the  United  States),  try  us  for  treason  for  believing  and  prac- 
tising our  religious  notions  and  ideas.     I  think,  if  I  am  not  mistaken,  that  the 

1  For  text  of  the  addresses  at  this  conference,  see  Deseret  News,  extra,  September 
14,  1852. 


286  THE   STORY    OF   THE    MORMONS 

constitution  gives  the  privilege  to  all  of  the  inhabitants  of  this  country,  of  the  free 
exercise  of  their  religious  notions,  and  the  freedom  of  their  faith  and  the  practice 
of  it.  Then,  if  it  can  be  proved  to  a  demonstration  that  the  Latter-Day  Saints 
have  actually  embraced,  as  a  part  and  portion  of  their  religion,  the  doctrine  of  a 
plurality  of  wives,  it  is  constitutional.  And  should  there  ever  be  laws  enacted  by 
this  government  to  restrict  them  from  the  free  exercise  of  their  religion,  such  laws 
must  be  unconstitutional." 

Thus,  at  this  early  date  in  the  history  of  Utah,  was  stated  the 
Mormon  doctrine  of  the  constitutional  foundation  of  this  belief, 
and,  in  the  views  then  stated,  may  be  discovered  the  reason  for  the 
bitter  opposition  which  the  Mormon  church  is  still  making  to  a 
constitutional  amendment  specifically  declaring  that  polygamy  is 
a  violation  of  the  fundamental  law  of  the  United  States. 

Pratt  then  spoke  at  great  length  on  the  necessity  and  rightful- 
ness of  polygamy.  Taking  up  the  doctrine  of  a  previous  existence 
of  all  souls  and  a  kind  of  nobility  among  the  spirits,  he  said  that 
the  most  likely  place  for  the  noblest  spirits  to  take  their  tabernacles 
was  among  the  Saints,  and  he  continued :  — 

"  Now  let  us  inquire  what  will  become  of  those  individuals  who  have  this  law 
taught  unto  them  in  plainness,  if  they  reject  it."  (A  voice  in  the  stand  "  They  will 
be  damned.")  "  1  will  tell  you.  They  will  be  damned,  saith  the  Lord,  in  the  reve- 
lation he  hath  given.  Why  ?  Because,  where  much  is  given,  much  is  required. 
Where  there  is  great  knowledge  unfolded  for  the  exaltation,  glory  and  happiness 
of  the  sons  and  daughters  of  God,  if  they  close  up  their  hearts,  if  they  reject  the 
testimony  of  his  word  and  will,  and  do  not  give  heed  to  the  principles  he  has 
ordained  for  their  good,  they  are  worthy  of  damnation,  and  the  Lord  has  said 
they  shall  be  damned.1* 

After  Brigham  Young  had  made  a  statement  concerning  the 
history  of  the  "revelation,"  already  referred  to,  the  "revelation  " 
itself  was  read. 

The  Millennial  Star  (Liverpool)  published  the  proceedings  of 
this  conference  in  a  supplement  to  its  Volume  XV,  and  the  text  of 
the  "revelation"  in  its  issue  of  January  I,  1853,  saying  editorially 
in  the  next  number :  — ■ 

"  None  [of  the  revelations]  seem  to  penetrate  so  deep,  or  be  so  well  calcu- 
lated to  shake  to  its  very  center  the  social  structure  which  has  been  reared  and 
vainly  nurtured  by  this  professedly  wise  and  Christian  generation ;  none  more 
conclusively  exhibit  how  surely  an  end  must  come  to  all  the  works,  institutions, 
ordinances  and  covenants  of  men ;  none  more  portray  the  eternity  of  God's  pur- 


THE    DOCTRINE    OF   POLYGAMY 


287 


f 


pose  —  and,  we  may  say,  none  have  carried  so  mighty  an  influence,  or  had  the 
power  to  stamp  their  divinity  upon  the  mind  by  absorbing  every  feeling  of  the 
soul,  to  the  extent  of  the  one  which  has  appeared  in  our  last." 

With  the  Mormon  church  in  England,  however,  the  publication 
of  the  new  doctrine  proved  a  bombshell,  as  is  shown  by  the  fact 
that  2164  excommunications  in  the  British  Isles  were  reported  to 
the  semiannual  conference  of  December  31,  1852,  and  1776  to  the 
conference  of  the  following  June. 

The  doctrine  of  "  sealing  "  has  been  variously  stated.  Accord- 
ing to  one  early  definition,  the  man  and  the  woman  who  are  to  be 
properly  mated  are  selected  in  heaven  in  a  preexistent  state;  if, 
through  a  mistake  in  an  earthly  marriage,  A  has  got  the  spouse 
intended  for  B,  the  latter  may  consider  himself  a  husband  to  Mrs. 
A.  Another  early  explanation  which  may  be  cited  was  thus  stated 
by  Henry  Rowe  in  the  Boston  Investigator  oi  February  3,  1845  :  — 

"  The  spiritual  wife  doctrine  I  will  explain,  as  taught  me  by  Elder  W e, 

as  taught  by  Joseph  Smith,  Brigham  Young,  Elder  Adams,  William  Smith,  and 
the  rest  of  the  Quorum,  etc.,  etc.  Joseph  had  a  revelation  from  God  that  there 
were  a  number  of  spirits  to  be  born  into  the  world  before  their  exaltation  in  the 
next ;  that  Christ  would  not  come  until  all  these  spirits  received  or  entered 
their  '  tabernacles  of  clay ' ;  that  these  spirits  were  hovering  around  the  world, 
and  at  the  door  of  bad  houses,  watching  a  chance  of  getting  into  their  taber- 
nacles ;  that  God  had  provided  an  honorable  way  for  them  to  come  forth  —  that 
was,  by  the  Elders  in  Israel  sealing  up  virtuous  women ;  and  as  there  was  no 
provision  made  for  woman  in  the  Scriptures,  their  only  chance  of  heaven  was  to 
be  sealed  lip  to  some  Elder  for  time  and  eternity,  and  be  a  star  in  his  crown  forever ; 
that  those  who  were  the  cause  of  bringing  forth  these  spirits  would  receive  a  re- 
ward, the  ratio  of  which  reward  should  be  the  greater  or  less  according  to  the  num- 
ber they  were  the  means  of  bringing  forth." 

Brigham  Young's  definition  of  "  spiritual  wifeism "  was  thus 
expressed  :  "  And  I  would  say,  as  no  man  can  be  perfect  without 
the  woman,  so  no  woman  can  be  perfect  without  a  man  to  lead 
her.  I  tell  you  the  truth  as  it  is  in  the  bosom  of  eternity ;  and  I 
say  to  every  man  upon  the  face  of  the  earth,  if  he  wishes  to  be 
saved,  he  cannot  be  saved  without  a  woman  by  his  side.  This  is 
spiritual  wifeism,  that  is,  the  doctrine  of  spiritual  wives."  1 

The  Mormon,  under  polygamy,  was  taught  that  he  "  married  " 
for  time,  but  was  "  sealed  "  for  eternity.  The  "sealing"  was  there- 
fore the  more  important  ceremony,  and  was  performed  in  the  En- 

1  Times  and  Seasons,  Vol.  VI,  p.  955. 


288  THE    STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

dowment  House,  with  the  accompaniment  of  secret  oaths  and 
mystic  ceremonies.  If  a  wife  disliked  her  husband,  and  wished 
to  be  "sealed  "  to  a  man  of  her  choice,  the  Mormon  church  would 
marry  her  to  the  latter1  —  a  marriage  made  actual  in  every  sense 
—  if  he  was  acceptable  as  a  Mormon;  and,  if  the  first  husband 
also  wanted  to  be  "sealed"  to  her,  the  church  would  perform  a 
mock  ceremony  to  satisfy  this  husband.  "  It  is  impossible,"  says 
Hyde,  "  to  state  all  the  licentiousness,  under  the  name  of  religion, 
that  these  sealing  ordinances  have  occasioned."  2 

A  Mormon  preacher  never  hesitated  to  go  to  any  lengths  in 
justifying  the  doctrine  of  plural  marriages.  One  illustration  of 
this  may  suffice.  Orson  Hyde,  in  a  discourse  in  the  Salt  Lake 
Tabernacle  in  March,  1857,  made  the  following  argument  to  sup- 
port a  claim  that-Jesus  Christ  was  a  polygamist:  — 

"  It  will  be  borne  in  mind  that,  once  on  a  time,  there  was  a  marriage  in  Cana 
of  Galilee  ;  and  on  a  careful  reading  of  that  transaction  it  will  be  discovered  that 
no  less  a  person  than  Jesus  Christ  was  married  on  that  occasion.  If  he  was 
never  married,  his  intimacy  with  Mary  and  Martha,  and  the  other  Mary  also, 
whom  Jesus  loved,  must  have  been  highly  unbecoming  and  improper,  to  say  the 
best  of  it.  I  will  venture  to  say  that,  if  Jesus  Christ  was  now  to  pass  through  the 
most  pious  countries  in  Christendom,  with  a  train  of  women  such  as  used  to 
follow  him,  fondling  about  him,  combing  his  hair,  anointing  him  with  precious 
ointments,  washing  his  feet  with  tears  and  wiping  them  with  the  hair  of  their 
heads,  and  unmarried,  or  even  married,  he  would  be  mobbed,  tarred  and  feathered, 
and  rode,  not  on  an  ass,  but  on  a  rail.  .  .  .  Did  he  multiply,  and  did  he  see 
his  seed?  Did  he  honor  his  Father's  law  by  complying  with  it, or  did  he  not? 
Others  may  do  as  they  like,  but  I  will  not  charge  our  Saviour  with  neglect  or 
transgression  in  this  or  any  other  duty."  8 

The  doctrine  of  "adoption,"  referred  to,  taught  that  the  direct 
line  of  the  true  priesthood  was  broken  with  the  death  of  Christ's 
apostles,  and  that  the  rights  of  the  lineage  of  Abraham  could  be 
secured  only  by  being  "  adopted "  by  a  modern  apostle,  all  of 
whom  were  recognized  as  lineal  descendants  of  Abraham.  Re- 
course was  here  had  to  the  Scriptures,  and  Romans  iv.  16  was 

1  One  of  Stenhouse's  informants  about  the  "reformation"  of  1856  in  Utah  writes: 
"  It  was  hinted,  and  secretly  taught  by  authority,  that  women  should  form  relations 
with  more  than  one  man."  On  this  Stenhouse  says:  "The  author  has  no  personal 
knowledge,  from  the  present  leaders  of  the  church,  of  this  teaching;  but  he  has  often 
heard  that  something  would  then  be  taught  which  '  would  test  the  brethren  as  much  as 
polygamy  had  tried  the  sisters.'  "  —  "  Rocky  Mountain  Saints,"  p.  301. 

2  "  Mormonism,"  p.  84. 

3  Journal  of Discourses,  Vol.  IV,  p.  259. 


THE   DOCTRINE   OF  POLYGAMY  289 

quoted  to  sustain  this  doctrine.  The  first  "  adoptions  "  took  place 
in  the  Nauvoo  Temple.  Lee  was  "adopted  to"  Brigham  Young, 
and  Young's  and  Lee's  children  were  then  "  adopted  to  "  their  own 
fathers. 

With  this  necessary  explanation  of  the  introduction  of  polyg- 
amy, we  may  take  up  the  narrative  of  events  at  Nauvoo. 


CHAPTER   XII 

THE   SUPPRESSION   OF   THE   EXPOSITOR 

Smith  was  now  to  encounter  a  kind  of  resistance  within  the 
church  that  he  had  never  met.  In  all  previous  apostasies,  where 
members  had  dared  to  attack  his  character  or  question  his 
authority,  they  had  been  summarily  silenced,  and  in  most  cases 
driven  at  once  out  of  the  Mormon  community.  But  there  were 
men  at  Nauvoo  above  the  average  of  the  Mormon  convert  as 
regards  intelligence  and  wealth,  who  refused  to  follow  the  prophet 
in  his  new  doctrine  regarding  marriage,  and  whose  opposition  took 
the  very  practical  shape  of  the  establishment  of  a  newspaper  in 
the  Mormon  city  to  expose  him  and  to  defend  themselves. 

In  his  testimony  in  the    Higbee   trial    Smith    had   accused    a 

prominent  Mormon,  Dr.  R.   D.  Foster,  of  stealing  and  of  gross 

insults  to  women.     Dj.  Foster,  according  to  current  report,  had 

v  found  Smith  at  his  house,  and  had  received  from  his  wife  a  con- 

\  fession  that  Smith  had  been  persuading  her  to  become  one  of  his 

spiritual  wives.1 

Among  the  leading  members  of  the  church  at  Nauvoo  at  this 
time  were  two  brothers,  William  and  Wilson  Law.  They  were 
Canadians,  and  had  brought  considerable  property  with  them,  and 
in  the  "revelation"  of  January  19,  1841,  William  Law  was  among 
those  who  were  directed  to  take  stock  in  Nauvoo  House,  and  was 
named  as  one  of  the  First  Presidency,  and  was  made  registrar  of 
the  University.  Wilson  Law  was  a  regent  of  the  University  and 
a  major  general  of  the  Legion.  General  Law  had  been  an  espe- 
cial favorite  of  Smith.     In  writing  to  him  while  in  hiding  from  the 

1  "At  the  May,  1844,  term  of  the  Hancock  Circuit  Court  two  indictments  were 
found  against  Smith  by  the  grand  jury  —  one  for  adultery  and  one  for  perjury.  To  the 
surprise  of  all,  on  the  Monday  following,  the  Prophet  appeared  in  court  and  demanded 
that  he  be  tried  on  the  last-named  indictment.  The  prosecutor  not  being  ready,  a  con- 
tinuance was  entered  to  the  next  term."  —  Gregg,  "  History  of  Hancock  County,"  p.  301. 

290 


THE   SUPPRESSION   OF   THE   EXPOSITOR  291 

Missouri  authorities  in  1842,  Smith  says,  "I  love  that  soul  that 
is  so  nobly  established  in  that  clay  of  yours."  1  At  the  conference 
of  April,  1844,  Hyrum  Smith  said:  "  I  wish  to  speak  about  Messrs. 
Law's  steam  mill.  There  has  been  a  great  deal  of  bickering  about 
it.  The  mill  has  been  a  great  benefit  to  the  city.  It  has  brought 
in  thousands  who  would  not  have  come  here.  The  Messrs.  Law 
have  sunk  their  capital  and  done  a  great  deal  of  good.  It  is  out 
of  character  to  cast  any  aspersions  on  the  Messrs.  Law." 

Dr.  Foster,  the  Laws,  and  Counsellor  Sylvester  Emmons 
became  greatly  stirred  up  about  the  spiritual  wife  doctrine,  and 
the  effort  of  Smith  and  those  in  his  confidence  to  teach  and 
enforce  the  doctrine  of  plural  wives ;  and  they  finally  decided  to 
establish  in  Nauvoo  a  newspaper  that  would  openly  attack  the 
new  order  of  things.  The  name  chosen  for  this  newspaper  was 
the  Expositor,  and  Emmons  was  its  editor.2  Its  motto  was : 
"The  Truth,  the  whole  Truth,  and  nothing  but  the  Truth,"  and 
its  prospectus  announced  as  its  purpose,  "  Unconditional  repeal  of 
the  city  charter  —  to  correct  the  abuses  of  the  unit  power  —  to 
advocate  disobedience  to  political  revelations."  Only  one  number 
of  this  newspaper  was  ever  issued,  but  that  number  was  almost 
directly  the  cause  of  the  prophet's  death. 

The  most  important  feature  of  the  Expositor  (which  bore  date 
of  June  7,  1844)  was  a  "preamble"  and  resolutions  of  "  seceders 
from  the  church  at  Nauvoo,"  and  affidavits  by  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
William  Law  and  Austin  Cowles  setting  forth  that  Hyrum  Smith 
had  read  the  "  revelation  "  concerning  polygamy  to  William  Law 
and  to  the  High  Council,  and  that  Mrs.  Law  had  read  it.3 

The  "  preamble  "  affirmed  the  belief  of  the  seceders  in  the 
Mormon  Bible  and  the  "  Book  of  Doctrine  and  Covenants,"  but 
declared  their  intention  to  "  explode  the  vicious  principles  of 
Joseph  Smith,"  adding,  "  We  are  aware,  however,  that  we  are 
hazarding  every  earthly  blessing,  particularly  property,  and  prob- 

1  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XX,  p.  695. 

2  Emmons  went  direct  to  Beardstown,  Illinois,  after  the  destruction  of  the  paper, 
and  lived  there  till  the  day  of  his  death,  a  leading  citizen.  He  established  the  first 
newspaper  published  in  Beardstown,  and  was  for  sixteen  years  the  mayor  of  the  city. 

3  These  were  the  only  affidavits  printed  in  the  Expositor.  More  than  one  descrip- 
tion of  the  paper  has  stated  that  it  contained  many  more.  Thus,  Appleton's  "  American 
Encyclopedia,"  under  "  Mormons,"  says,  "  In  the  first  number  (there  was  only  one) 
they  printed  the  affidavits  of  sixteen  women  to  the  effect  that  Joseph  Smith  and  Sidney 
Rigdon  and  others  had  endeavored  to  convert  them  to  the  spiritual  wife  doctrine." 


292  THE   STORY   OF   THE  MORMONS 

ably  life  itself,  in  striking  this  blow  at  tyranny  and  oppression." 
Many  of  them,  it  was  explained,  had  sought  a  reformation  of  the 
church  without  any  public  exposure,  but  they  had  been  spurned, 
"  particularly  by  Joseph,  who  would  state  that,  if  he  had  been  or 
was  guilty  of  the  charges  we  would  charge  him  with,  he  would 
not  make  acknowledgment,  but  would  rather  be  damned,  for  it 
would  detract  from  his  dignity  and  would  consequently  prove  the 
overthrow  of  the  church.  We  would  ask  him,  on  the  other  hand, 
if  the  overthrow  of  the  church  were  not  inevitable  ;  to  which  he 
often  replied  that  we  would  all  go  to  hell  together  and  convert  it 
into  a  heaven  by  casting  the  devil  out ;  and,  says  he,  hell  is  by  no 
means  the  place  this  world  of  fools  supposes  it  to  be,  but,  on  the 
contrary,  it  is  quite  an  agreeable  place." 

The  "  preamble  "  further  set  forth  the  methods  employed  by 
Smith  to  induce  women  from  other  countries,  who  had  joined  the 
Mormons  in  Nauvoo,  to  become  his  spiritual  wives,  reciting  the 
arguments  advanced,  and  thus  summing  up  the  general  result : 
"  She  is  thunderstruck,  faints,  recovers  and  refuses.  The 
prophet  damns  her  if  she  rejects.  She  thinks  of  the  great  sacri- 
fice, and  of  the  many  thousand  miles  she  has  travelled  over  sea 
and  land  that  she  might  save  her  soul  from  pending  ruin,  and 
replies,  '  God's  will  be  done  and  not  mine.'  The  prophet  and  his 
devotees  in  this  way  are  gratified."  Smith's  political  aspirations 
were  condemned  as  preposterous,  and  the  false  "  doctrine  of  many 
gods  "  was  called  blasphemy. 

Fifteen  resolutions  followed.  They  declared  against  the  evils 
named,  and  also  condemned  the  order  to  the  Saints  to  gather  in 
haste  at  Nauvoo,  explaining  that  the  purpose  of  this  command 
was  to  enable  the  men  in  control  of  the  church  to  sell  property  at 
exorbitant  prices,  "  and  thus  the  wealth  that  is  brought  into  the 
place  is  swallowed  up  by  the  one  great  throat,  from  whence  there 
is  no  return."  The  seceders  asserted  that,  although  they  had  an 
intimate  acquaintance  with  the  affairs  of  the  church,  they  did  not 
know  of  any  property  belonging  to  it  except  the  Temple.  Finally, 
as  speaking  for  the  true  church,  they  ordered  all  preachers  to 
cease  to  teach  the  doctrine  of  plural  gods,  a  plurality  of  wives, 
sealing,  etc.,  and  directed  offenders  in  this  respect  to  report  and 
have  their  licenses  renewed.  Another  feature  of  the  issue  was  a 
column  address  signed  by  Francis  M.  Higbee,  advising  the  citizens 


THE   SUPPRESSION   OF   THE  EXPOSITOR  293 

of  Hancock  County  not  to  send  Hyrum  Smith  to  the  legislature, 
since  to  support  him  was  to  support  Joseph,  "  a  man  who  contends 
all  governments  are  to  be  put  down,  and  one  established  upon  its 
ruins." 

The  appearance  of  this  sheet  created  the  greatest  excitement 
among  the  Mormon  leaders  that  they  had  experienced  since  leav- 
ing Missouri.  They  recognized  in  it  immediately  a  mouthpiece 
of  men  who  were  better  informed  than  Bennett,  and  who  were 
ready  to  address  an  audience  composed  both  of  their  own  flock 
and  of  their  outlying  non-Mormon  neighbors,  whose  antipathy  to 
them  was  already  manifesting  itself  aggressively.  To  permit  the 
continued  publication  of  this  sheet  meant  one  of  those  surrenders 
which  Smith  had  never  made. 

The  prophet  therefore  took  just  such  action  as  would  have 
been  expected  of  him  in  the  circumstances.  Calling  a  meeting  of 
the  City  Council,  he  proceeded  to  put  the  Expositor  and  its  editors 
on  trial,  as  if  that  body  was  of  a  judicial  instead  of  a  legislative 
character.  The  minutes  of  this  trial,  which  lasted  all  of  Saturday, 
June  8,  and  a  part  of  Monday,  June  10,  1844,  can  be  found  in 
the  Neighbor  of  June  19,  of  that  year,  filling  six  columns.  The 
prophet-mayor  occupied  the  chair,  and  the  defendants  were  absent. 

The  testimony  introduced  aimed  at  the  start  to  break  down 
the  characters  of  Dr.  Foster,  Higbee,  and  the  Laws.  A  mechanic 
testified  that  the  Laws  had  bought  "bogus"  (counterfeit)  dies  of 
him.  The  prophet  told  how  William  Law  had  "  pursued  "  him  to 
recover  $40,000  that  Smith  owed  him.  Hyrum  Smith  alleged 
that  William  Law  had  offered  to  give  a  man  $500  if  he  would  kill 
Hyrum,  and  had  confessed  adultery  to  him,  making  a  still  more 
heinous  charge  against  Higbee.  Hyrum  referred  "  to  the  revela- 
tion of  the  High  Council  of  the  church,  which  has  caused  so  much 
talk  about  a  multiplicity  of  wives,"  and  declared  that  it  "con- 
cerned things  which  transpired  in  former  days,  and  had  no  refer- 
ence to  the  present  time."  Testimony  was  also  given  to  show 
that  the  Laws  were  not  liberal  to  the  poor,  and  that  William's 
motto  with  his  fellow-churchmen  who  owed  him  was,  "  Punctual- 
ity, punctuality." 1  This  was  naturally  a  serious  offence  in  the 
eyes  of  the  Smiths. 

1  The  Expositor  contained  this  advertisement :  "  The  subscribers  wish  to  inform  all 
those  who,  through  sickness  or  other  misfortunes,  are  much  limited  in  their  means  of 


294 


THE   STORY    OF   THE   MORMONS 


The  prophet  declared  that  the  conduct  of  such  men,  and  of 
such  papers  as  the  Expositor,  was  calculated  to  destroy  the  peace 
of  the  city.  He  unblushingly  asserted  that  what  he  had  preached 
about  marriage  only  showed  the  order  in  ancient  days,  having 
nothing  to  do  with  the  present  time.  In  regard  to  the  alleged 
revelation  about  polygamy  he  explained  that,  on  inquiring  of  the 
Lord  concerning  the  Scriptural  teaching  that  "  they  neither  marry 
nor  are  given  in  marriage  in  heaven,"  he  received  a  reply  to  the 
effect  that  men  in  this  life  must  marry  in  one  of  eternity,  other- 
wise they  must  remain  as  angels,  or  be  single  in  heaven. 

Smith  then  proposed  that  the  Council  "  make  some  provision  " 
for  putting  down  the  Expositor,  declaring  its  allegations  to  be 
"treasonable  against  all  chartered  rights  and  privileges."  He 
read  from  the  federal  and  state  constitutions  to  define  his  idea  of 
the  rights  of  the  press,  and  quoted  Blackstone  on  private  wrongs. 
Hyrum  openly  advocated  smashing  the  press  and  pieing  the  type. 
One  councillor  alone  raised  his  voice  for  moderation,  proposing  to 
give  the  offenders  a  few  days'  notice,  and  to  assess  a  fine  of  $300 
for  every  libel.  W.  W.  Phelps  (who  was  back  in  the  fold  again) 
held  that  the  city  charter  gave  them  power  to  declare  the  news- 
paper a  nuisance,  and  cited  the  spilling  of  the  tea  in  Boston 
harbor  as  a  precedent  for  an  attack  on  the  Expositor  office. 
Finally,  on  June  10,  this  resolution  was  passed  unanimously  :  — 

"  Resolved  by  the  City  Council  of  the  City  of  Nauvoo  that  the  printing  office 
from  whence  issues  the  Nauvoo  Expositor  is  a  public  nuisance,  and  also  all  of 
said  Nauvoo  Expositors  which  may  be  or  exist  in  said  establishment ;  and  the 
mayor  is  instructed  to  cause  said  printing  establishment  and  papers  to  be  removed 
without  delay,  in  such  manner  as  he  shall  direct." 

Smith,  of  course,  made  very  prompt  use  of  this  authority,  issu- 
ing the  following  order  to  the  city  marshal :  — 

"You  are  hereby  commanded  to  destroy  the  printing  press  from  whence 

issues  the  Nauvoo  Expositor,  and  pi  the  type  of  said  printing  establishment  in 

the  street,  and  burn  all  the  Expositors  and  libellous  hand  bills  found  in  said 

establishment ;  and  if  resistance  be  offered  to  the  execution  of  this  order,  by  the 

owners  or  others,  destroy  the  house ;  and  if  any  one  threatens  you  or  the  Mayor 

or  the  officers  of  the  city,  arrest  those  who  threaten  you ;  and  fail  not  to  execute 

this  order  without  delay,  and  make  due  return  thereon. 

''Joseph  Smith,  Mayor." 

procuring  bread  for  their  families,  that  we  have  allotted  Thursday  of  every  week  to 
grind  toll  free  for  them,  till  grain  becomes  plentiful  after  harvest.  —  W.  &  W.  Law." 


THE   SUPPRESSION   OF   THE   EXPOSITOR  295 

To  meet  any  armed  opposition  which  might  arise,  the  acting 
major  general  of  the  Legion  was  thus  directed :  — 

"  You  are  hereby  commanded  to  hold  the  Nauvoo  Legion  in  readiness  forth- 
with to  execute  the  city  ordinances,  and  especially  to  remove  the  printing  estab- 
lishment of  the  Nauvoo  Expositor ;  and  this  you  are  required  to  do  at  sight,  under 
the  penalty  of  the  laws,  provided  the  marshal  shall  require  it  and  need  your 
services. 

"Joseph  Smith, 

"  Lieutenant  General  Nauvoo  Legion." 

The  story  of  the  compliance  with  the  mayor's  order  is  thus 
concisely  told  in  the  "marshal's  return,"  "The  within-named  press 
and  type  is  destroyed  and  pied  according  to  order  on  this  10th  day 
of  June,  1844,  at  about  eight  o'clock  p.m."  The  work  was  accom- 
plished without  any  serious  opposition.  The  marshal  appeared  at 
the  newspaper  office,  accompanied  by  an  escort  from  the  Legion, 
and  forced  his  way  into  the  building.  The  press  and  type  were 
carried  into  the  street,  where  the  press  was  broken  up  with  ham- 
mers, and  all  that  was  combustible  was  burned. 

Dr.  Foster  and  the  Laws  fled  at  once  to  Carthage,  Illinois,  under 
the  belief  that  their  lives  were  in  danger.  The  story  of  their  flight 
and  of  the  destruction  of  their  newspaper  plant  by  order  of  the  Nau- 
voo authorities  spread  quickly  all  over  the  state,  and  in  the  neigh- 
boring counties  the  anti-Mormon  feeling,  that  had  for  some  time 
been  growing  more  intense,  was  now  fanned  to  fury.  This  feeling 
the  Mormon  leaders  seemed  determined  to  increase  still  further. 

The  owners  of  the  Expositor  sued  out  at  Carthage  a  writ  for  the 
removal  to  that  place  of  Joseph  Smith  and  the  Nauvoo  counsellors 
on  a  charge  of  a  riot  in  connection  with  the  destruction  of  their 
plant.  This  writ,  when  presented,  was  at  once  set  aside  by  a  writ 
of  habeas  corpus  issued  by  the  Nauvoo  Municipal  Court,  but  the  | 
case  was  heard  before  a  Mormon  justice  of  the  peace  on  June  17, 
and  he  discharged  the  accused.  As  if  this  was  not  a  sufficient 
defiance  of  public  opinion,  Smith,  as  mayor,  published  a  "  procla- 
mation "  in  the  Neighbor  of  June  19,  reciting  the  events  in  connec- 
tion with  the  attack  on  the  Expositor,  and  closing  thus :  — 

"  Our  city  is  infested  with  a  set  of  blacklegs,  counterfeiters  and  debauchees, 
and  that  the  proprietors  of  this  press  were  of  that  class,  the  minutes  of  the 
Municipal  Court  fully  testify,  and  in  ridding  our  young  and  flourishing  city  of  such 
characters,  we  are  abused  by  not  only  villanous  demagogues,  but  by  some  who, 


296  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

from  their  station  and  influence  in  society,  ought  rather  to  raise  than  depress  the 
standard  of  human  excellence.  We  have  no  disturbance  or  excitement  among 
us,  save  what  is  made  by  the  thousand  and  one  idle  rumors  afloat  in  the  country. 
Every  one  is  protected  in  his  person  and  property,  and  but  few  cities  of  a  popula- 
tion of  twenty  thousand  people,  in  the  United  States,  hath  less  of  dissipation  or 
vice  of  any  kind  than  the  city  of  Nauvoo. 

"  Of  the  correctness  of  our  conduct  in  this  affair,  we  appeal  to  every  high 
court  in  the  state,  and  to  its  ordeal  we  are  willing  to  appear  at  any  time  that  His 
Excellency,  Governor  Ford,  shall  please  to  call  us  before  it.  I,  therefore,  in  be- 
half of  the  Municipal  Court  of  Nauvoo,  warn  the  lawless  not  to  be  precipitate  in 
any  interference  in  our  affairs,  for  as  sure  as  there  is  a  God  in  Israel  we  shall  ride 
triumphant  over  all  oppression. 

" Joseph  Smith,  Mayor" 


CHAPTER   XIII 

UPRISING   OF  THE   NON-MORMONS  — SMITH'S   ARREST 

The  gauntlet  thus  thrown  down  by  Smith  was  promptly  taken 
up  by  his  non-Mormon  neighbors,  and  public  meetings  were  held 
in  various  places  to  give  expression  to  the  popular  indignation.  At 
such  a  meeting  in  Warsaw,  Hancock  County,  eighteen  miles  down 
the  river,  the  following  was  among  the  resolutions  adopted :  — 

"  Resolved,  that  the  time,  in  our  opinion,  has  arrived  when  the  adherents  of 
Smith,  as  a  body,  should  be  driven  from  the  surrounding  settlements  into  Nauvoo  ; 
that  the  Prophet  and  his  miscreant  adherents  should  then  be  demanded  at  their 
hands,  and,  if  not  surrendered,  a  war  of  extermination  should  be  waged,  to  the 
entire  destruction,  if  necessary  for  our  protection,  of  his  adherents." 

Warsaw  was  considered  the  most  violent  anti-Mormon  neigh- 
borhood, the  Signal  newspaper  there  being  especially  bitter  in 
its  attacks ;  but  the  people  in  all  the  surrounding  country  began 
to  prepare  for  "war"  in  earnest.  At  Warsaw  150  men  were 
mustered  in  under  General  Knox,  and  $1000  was  voted  for  sup- 
plies. In  Carthage,  Rushville,  Green  Plains,  and  many  other  towns 
in  Illinois  men  began  organizing  themselves  into  military  compa- 
nies, cannon  were  ordered  from  St.  Louis,  and  the  near-by  places 
in  Iowa,  as  well  as  some  in  Missouri,  sent  word  that  their  aid  could 
be  counted  on.  Rumors  of  all  sorts  of  Mormon  outrages  were 
circulated,  and  calls  were  made  for  militia,  here  to  protect  the 
people  against  armed  Mormon  bands,  there  against  Mormon 
thieves.  Many  farmhouses  were  deserted  by  their  owners  through 
fear,  and  the  steamboats  on  the  river  were  crowded  with  women 
and  children,  who  were  sent  to  some  safe  settlement  while  the  men 
were  doing  duty  in  the  militia  ranks.  Many  of  the  alarming  re- 
ports were  doubtless  started  by  non-Mormons  to  inflame  the  public 
feeling  against  their  opponents,  others  were  the  natural  outgrowth 
of  the  existing  excitement. 

297 


298  THE   STORY   OF   THE    MORMONS 

On  June  17  a  committee  from  Carthage  made  to  Governor  Ford 
so  urgent  a  request  for  the  calling  out  of  the  militia,  that  he  decided 
to  visit  the  disturbed  district  and  make  an  investigation  on  his  own 
account.1  On  arriving  at  Carthage  he  found  a  considerable  militia 
force  already  assembled  as  a  posse  comitatus,  at  the  call  of  the  con- 
stables. This  force,  and  similar  ones  in  McDonough  and  Schuyler 
counties,  he  placed  under  command  of  their  own  officers.  Next, 
the  governor  directed  the  mayor  and  council  of  Nauvoo  to  send  a 
committee  to  state  to  him  their  story  of  the  recent  doings.  This 
they  did,  convincing  him,  by  their  own  account,  of  the  outrageous 
character  of  the  proceedings  against  the  Expositor.  He  therefore 
arrived  at  two  conclusions :  first,  that  no  authority  at  his  command 
should  be  spared  in  bringing  the  Mormon  leaders  to  justice;  and, 
second,  that  this  must  be  done  without  putting  the  Mormons  in 
danger  of  an  attack  by  any  kind  of  a  mob.  He  therefore  addressed 
the  militia  force  from  each  county  separately,  urging  on  them  the 
necessity  of  acting  only  within  the  law,  and  securing  from  them 
all  a  vote  pledging  their  aid  to  the  governor  in  following  a  strictly 
legal  course,  and  protecting  from  violence  the  Mormon  leaders 
when  they  should  be  arrested. 

(The  governor  then  sent  word  to  Smith  that  he  and  his  associ- 
ates would  be  protected  if  they  would  surrender,  but  that  arrested 
they  should  be,  even  if  it  took  the  whole  militia  force  of  the  state 
to  accomplish  this.  The  constable  and  guards  who  carried  the 
governor's  mandate  to  Nauvoo  found  the  city  a  military  camp. 
Smith  had  placed  it  under  martial  law,  assembled  the  Legion, 
called  in  all  the  outlying  Mormons,  and  ordered  that  no  one  should 
enter  or  leave  the  place  without  submitting  to  the  strictest  inquiry. 
The  governor's  messengers  had  no  difficulty,  however,  in  gaining 
admission  to  Smith,  who  promised  that  he  and  the  members  of  the 
Council  would  accompany  the  officers  to  Carthage  the  next  morning 
(June  23)  at  eight  o'clock.  But  at  that  time  the  accused  did  not 
appear,  and,  without  any  delay  or  any  effort  to  arrest  the  men  who 
were  wanted,  the  officers  returned  to  Carthage  and  reported  that 
all  the  accused  had  fled. 

Whatever  had  been  the  intention  of  Smith  when  the  constable 
first  appeared,  he  and  his  associates  did  surrender,  as  the  governor 

1  The  story  of  the  events  just  preceding  Joseph  Smith's  death  are  taken  from  Gov- 
ernor Ford's  report  to  the  Illinois  legislature,  and  from  his  "  History  of  Illinois." 


UPRISING   OF   THE   NON-MORMONS  299 

had  expressed  a  belief  that  they  would  do.  Statements  of  the  cir- 
cumstances of  the  surrender  were  written  at  the  time  by  H.  P. 
Reid  and  James  W.  Woods  of  Iowa,  who  were  employed  by  the 
Mormons  as  counsel,  and  were  printed  in  the  Times  and  Seasons, 
Vol.  V,  No.  12.  Mr.  Woods,  according  to  these  accounts,  arrived 
in  Nauvoo  on  Friday,  June  21,  and,  after  an  interview  with  Smith 
and  his  friends,  went  to  Carthage  the  next  evening  to  assure  Gov- 
ernor Ford  that  the  Nauvoo  officers  were  ready  to  obey  the  law. 
There  he  learned  that  the  constable  and  his  assistants  had  gone  to 
Nauvoo  to  demand  his  clients'  surrender ;  but  he  does  not  mention 
their  return  without  the  prisoners.  He  must  have  known,  how- 
ever, that  the  first  intention  of  Smith  and  the  Council  was  to  flee 
from  the  wrath  of  their  neighbors.  The  "  Life  of  Brigham  Young," 
published  by  Cannon  &  Sons,  Salt  Lake  City,  1893,  contains  this 
statement :  — 

uThe  Prophet  hesitated  about  giving  himself  up,  and  started,  on  the  night  of 
June  22,  with  his  brother  Hyrum,  W.  Richards,  John  Taylor,  and  a  few  others 
for  the  Rocky  Mountains.  He  was,  however,  intercepted  by  his  friends,  and 
induced  to  abandon  his  project,  being  chided  with  cowardice  and  with  deserting 
his  people.  This  was  more  than  he  could  bear,  and  so  he  returned,  saying :  '  If 
my  life  is  of  no  value  to  my  friends,  it  is  of  no  value  to  myself.  We  are  going 
back  to  be  slaughtered.'" 

It  will  be  remembered  that  Young,  Rigdon,  Orson  Pratt,  and 
many  others  of  the  leading  men  of  the  church  were  absent  at  this 
time,  most  of  them  working  up  Smith's  presidential  "  boom." 
Orson  Pratt,  who  was  then  in  New  Hampshire,  said  afterward,  "  If 
the  Twelve  had  been  here,  we  would  not  have  seen  him  given  up." 

Woods  received  from  the  governor  a  pledge  of  protection  for 
all  who  might  be  arrested,  and  an  assurance  that  if  the  Mormons 
would  give  themselves  up  at  Carthage,  on  Monday,  the  24th,  this 
would  be  accepted  as  a  compliance  with  the  governor's  orders. 
He  therefore  returned  to  Nauvoo  with  this  message  on  Sunday 
evening,  and  the  next  morning  the  accused  left  that  place  with 
him  for  Carthage.  They  soon  met  Captain  Dunn,  who,  with  a 
company  of  sixty  men,  was  going  to  Nauvoo  with  an  order  from 
the  governor  for  the  state  arms  in  the  possession  of  the  Legion.1 
Woods   made  an  agreement  with   Captain    Dunn  that  the  arms 

1  It  was  stated  that  on  two  hours'  notice  two  thousand  men  appeared,  all  armed,  and 
that  they  surrendered  their  arms  in  compliance  with  the  governor's  plans. 


300  THE   STORY   OF   THE  MORMONS 

should  be  given  up  by  Smith's  order,  and  that  his  clients  should 
place  themselves  under  the  captain's  protection,  and  return  with 
him  to  Carthage.  The  return  trip  to  Nauvoo,  and  thence  to  Car- 
thage, was  not  completed  until  about  midnight.  The  Mormons 
were  not  put  under  restraint  that  night,  but  the  next  morning  they 
surrendered  themselves  to  the  constable  on  a  charge  of  riot  in 
connection  with  the  destruction  of  the  Expositor  plant. 


CHAPTER  XIV 

THE   MURDER   OF   THE   PROPHET  — HIS   CHARACTER 

On  Tuesday  morning,  Joseph  and  Hyrum  Smith  were  arrested 
again  in  Carthage,  this  time  on  a  charge  of  treason  in  levying  war 
against  the  state,  by  declaring  martial  law  in  Nauvoo  and  calling 
out  the  Legion.  In  the  afternoon  of  that  day  all  the  accused, 
numbering  fifteen,  appeared  before  a  justice  of  the  peace,  and,  to 
prevent  any  increase  in  the  public  excitement,  gave  bonds  in  the 
sum  of  $500  each  for  their  appearance  at  the  next  term  of  the  Cir- 
cuit Court  to  answer  the  charge  of  riot.1  It  was  late  in  the  evening 
when  this  business  was  finished,  and  nothing  was  said  at  the  time 
about  the  charge  of  treason. 

Very  soon  after  their  return  to  the  hotel,  however,  the  consta- 
ble who  had  arrested  the  Smiths  on  the  new  charge  appeared  with 
a  mittimus  from  the  justice  of  the  peace,  and,  under  its  authority, 
conveyed  them  to  the  county  jail.  Their  counsel  immediately 
argued  before  the  governor  that  this  action  was  illegal,  as  the 
Smiths  had  had  no  hearing  on  the  charge  of  treason,  and  the  gov- 
ernor went  with  the  lawyers  to  consult  the  justice  concerning  his 
action.  The  justice  explained  that  he  had  directed  the  removal  of 
the  prisoners  to  jail  because  he  did  not  consider  them  safe  in  the 
hotel.  The  governor  held  that,  from  the  time  of  their  delivery  to 
the  jailer,  they  were  beyond  his  jurisdiction  and  responsibility,  but 
he  granted  a  request  of  their  counsel  for  a  military  guard  about 
the  jail.  He  says,  however,  that  he  apprehended  neither  an  attack 
on  the  building  nor  an  escape  of  the  prisoners,  adding  that  if  they 
had  escaped,  "  it  would  have  been  the  best  way  of  getting  rid  of 

1  The  trial  of  the  survivors  resulted  in  a  verdict  of  acquittal.  "The  Mormons,"  says 
Governor  Ford,  "could  have  a  Mormon  jury  to  be  tried  by,  selected  by  themselves,  and 
the  anti-Mormons,  by  objecting  to  the  sheriff  and  regular  panel,  could  have  one  from  the 
anti-Mormons.  No  one  could  [then]  be  convicted  of  any  crime  in  Hancock  County." 
■ — "  History  of  Illinois,"  p.  369. 

301 


302  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

the  Mormons,"  since  these  leaders  would  never  have  dared  to 
return  to  the  state,  and  all  their  followers  would  have  joined  them 
in  their  place  of  refuge. 

The  militia  force  in  Carthage  at  that  time  numbered  some 
twelve  hundred  men,  with  four  hundred  or  five  hundred  more  per- 
sons under  arms  in  the  town.  There  was  great  pressure  on  the 
governor  to  march  this  entire  force  to  Nauvoo,  ostensibly  to  search 
for  a  counterfeiting  establishment,  in  order  to  overawe  the  Mor- 
mons by  a  show  of  force.  The  governor  consented  to  this  plan, 
and  it  was  arranged  that  the  officers  at  Carthage  and  Warsaw 
should  meet  on  June  27  at  a  point  on  the  Mississippi  midway 
between  the  latter  place  and  Nauvoo. 

Governor  Ford  was  not  entirely  certain  about  the  safety  of  the 
prisoners,  and  he  proposed  to  take  them  with  him  in  the  march  to 
Nauvoo,  for  their  protection.  But  while  preparations  for  this 
march  were  still  under  way,  trustworthy  information  reached  him 
that,  if  the  militia  once  entered  the  Mormon  city,  its  destruction 
would  certainly  follow,  the  plan  being  to  accept  a  shot  fired  at  the 
militia  by  some  one  as  a  signal  for  a  general  slaughter  and  confla- 
gration. He  determined  to  prevent  this,  not  only  on  humane 
grounds,  —  "  the  number  of  women,  inoffensive  and  young  persons, 
and  innocent  children  which  must  be  contained  in  such  a  city  of 
twelve  hundred  to  fifteen  thousand  inhabitants  "  —  but  because  he 
was  not  certain  of  the  outcome  of  a  conflict  in  which  the  Mormons 
would  outnumber  his  militia  almost  two  to  one.  After  a  council 
of  the  militia  officers,  in  which  a  small  majority  adhered  to  the 
original  plan,  the  governor  solved  the  question  by  summarily  dis- 
banding all  the  state  forces  under  arms,  except  three  companies, 
two  of  which  would  continue  to  guard  the  jail,  and  the  other  would 
accompany  the  governor  on  a  visit  to  Nauvoo,  where  he  proposed  to 
search  for  counterfeiters,  and  to  tell  the  inhabitants  that  any  retali- 
atory measures  against  the  non-Mormons  would  mean  "the  destruc- 
tion of  their  city,  and  the  extermination  of  their  people." 

The  jail  at  Carthage  was  a  stone  building,  situated  at  the  north- 
western boundary  of  the  village,  and  near  a  piece  of  woods  that 
were  convenient  for  concealment.  It  contained  the  jailer's  apart- 
ments, cells  for  prisoners,  and  on  the  second  story  a  sort  of  assem- 
bly room.  At  the  governor's  suggestion,  Joseph  and  Hyrum  were 
allowed  the  freedom  of  this  larger  room,  where  their  friends  were 


THE   MURDER   OF  THE   PROPHET  303 

permitted  to  visit  them,  without  any  precautions  against  the  intro- 
duction of  weapons  or  tools  for  their  escape. 

Their  guards  were  selected  from  the  company  known  as  the 
Carthage  Grays,  Captain  Smith,  commander.  In  this  choice  the 
governor  made  a  mistake  which  always  left  him  under  a  charge  of 
collusion  in  the  murder  of  the  prisoners.  It  was  not,  in  the  first 
place,  necessary  to  select  any  Hancock  company  for  this  service, 
as  he  had  militia  from  McDonough  County  on  the  ground.  All 
the  people  of  Hancock  County  were  in  a  fever  of  excitement 
against  the  Mormons,  while  the  McDonough  County  militia  had 
voted  against  the  march  into  Nauvoo.  Moreover,  when  the  pris- 
oners, after  their  arrival  at  Carthage,  had  been  exhibited  to  the 
McDonough  company  at  the  request  of  the  latter,  who  had  never 
seen  them,  the  Grays  were  so  indignant  at  what  they  called  a  tri- 
umphal display,  that  they  refused  to  obey  the  officer  in  command, 
and  were  for  a  time  in  revolt.  "  Although  I  knew  that  this  com- 
pany were  the  enemies  of  the  Smiths,"  says  the  governor,  "yet  I  had 
confidence  in  their  loyalty  and  their  integrity,  because  their  cap- 
tain was  universally  spoken  of  as  a  most  respectable  citizen  and 
honorable  man."  The  governor  further  excused  himself  for  the 
selection  because  the  McDonough  company  were  very  anxious  to 
return  home  to  attend  to  their  crops,  and  because,  as  the  prisoners 
were  likely  to  remain  in  jail  all  summer,  he  could  not  have  de- 
tained the  men  from  the  other  county  so  long.  He  presents  also 
the  curious  plea  that  the  frequent  appeals  made  to  him  direct  for 
the  extermination  or  expulsion  of  the  Mormons  gave  him  assur- 
ance that  no  act  of  violence  would  be  committed  contrary  to  his 
known  opposition,  and  he  observes,  "  This  was  a  circumstance 
well  calculated  to  conceal  from  me  the  secret  machinations  on 
foot !  " 

In  this  state  of  happy  confidence  the  governor  set  out  for  Nau- 
voo on  the  morning  of  June  27.  On  the  way,  one  of  the  officers 
who  accompanied  him  told  him  that  he  was  apprehensive  of  an 
attack  on  the  jail  because  of  talk  he  had  heard  in  Carthage.  The 
governor  was  reluctant  to  believe  that  such  a  thing  could  occur 
while  he  was  in  the  Mormon  city,  exposed  to  Mormon  vengeance, 
but  he  sent  back  a  squad,  with  instructions  to  Captain  Smith  to  see 
that  the  jail  was  safely  guarded.  He  had  apprehensions  of  his 
own,  however,  and  on  arriving  at  Nauvoo  simply  made  an  address 


3o4  THE    STORY    OF   THE    MORMONS 

as  above  outlined,  and  hurried  back  to  Carthage  without  even 
looking  for  counterfeit  money.  He  had  not  gone  more  than  two 
miles  when  messengers  met  him  with  the  news  that  the  Smith 
brothers  had  been  killed  in  the  jail. 

The  Warsaw  regiment  (it  is  so  called  in  the  local  histories), 
under  command  of  Colonel  Levi  Williams,  set  out  on  the  morning 
of  June  27  for  the  rendezvous  on  the  Mississippi,  preparatory 
to  the  march  to  Nauvoo.  The  resolutions  adopted  in  Warsaw  and 
the  tone  of  the  local  press  had  left  no  doubt  about  the  feeling  of 
the  people  of  that  neighborhood  toward  the  Mormons,  and  fully 
justified  the  decision  of  the  governor  in  countermanding  the  march 
proposed.  His  unexpected  order  disbanding  the  militia  reached 
the  Warsaw  troops  when  they  had  advanced  about  eight  miles. 
A  decided  difference  of  opinion  was  expressed  regarding  it.  Some 
of  the  most  violent,  including  Editor  Sharp  of  the  Signal,  wanted 
to  continue  the  march  to  Carthage  in  order  to  discuss  the  situation 
with  the  other  forces  there  ;  the  more  conservative  advised  an 
immediate  return  to  Warsaw.  Each  party  followed  its  own  incli- 
nation, those  who  continued  toward  Carthage  numbering,  it  is  said, 
about  two  hundred. 

While  there  is  no  doubt  that  the  Warsaw  regiment  furnished 
the  men  who  made  the  attack  on  the  jail,  there  is  evidence  that 
the  Carthage  Grays  were  in  collusion  with  them.  William  N. 
Daniels,  in  his  account  of  the  assault,  says  that  the  Warsaw  men, 
when  within  four  miles  of  Carthage,  received  a  note  from  the 
Grays  (which  he  quotes)  telling  them  of  the  good  opportunity 
presented  "to  murder  the  Smiths"  in  the  governor's  absence. 
His  testimony  alone  would  be  almost  valueless,  but  Governor  Ford 
confirms  it,  and  Gregg  (who  holds  that  the  only  purpose  of  the 
mob  was  to  seize  the  prisoners  and  run  them  into  Missouri)  says 
he  is  "compelled"  to  accept  the  report.  According  to  Governor 
Ford,  one  of  the  companies  designated  as  a  guard  for  the  jail  dis- 
banded and  went  home,  and  the  other  was  stationed  by  its  captain 
150  yards  from  the  building,  leaving  only  a  sergeant  and  eight 
men  at  the  jail  itself.  "  A  communication,"  he  adds,  "  was  soon 
established  between  the  conspirators  and  the  company,  and  it  was 
arranged  that  the  guards  should  have  their  guns  charged  with 
blank  cartridges,  and  fire  at  the  assailants  when  they  attempted  to 
enter  the  jail." 


THE   MURDER   OF   THE   PROPHET  305 

Both  Willard  Richards  and  John  Taylor  were  in  the  larger 
room  with  the  Smith  brothers  when  the  attack  was  made  (other 
visitors  having  recently  left),  and  both  gave  detailed  accounts  of 
the  shooting,  Richards  soon  afterward,  in  a  statement  printed  in 
the  Neighbor  and  the  Times  and  Seasons  under  the  title  "  Two 
Minutes  in  Gaol,"  and  Taylor  in  his  "  Martyrdom  of  Joseph 
Smith."  1     They  differ  only  in  minor  particulars. 

All  in  the  room  were  sitting  in  their  shirt  sleeves  except 
Richards,  when  they  saw  a  number  of  men,  with  blackened  faces, 
advancing  around  the  corner  of  the  jail  toward  the  stairway.  The 
door  leading  from  the  room  to  the  stairs  was  hurriedly  closed,  and, 
as  it  was  without  a  lock,  Hyrum  Smith  and  Richards  placed  their 
shoulders  against  it.  Finding  their  entrance  opposed,  the  assail- 
ants fired  a  shot  through  the  door  (Richards  says  they  fired  a 
volley  up  the  stairway),  which  caused  Hyrum  and  Richards  to 
leap  back.  While  Hyrum  was  retreating  across  the  room,  with 
his  face  to  the  door,  a  second  shot  fired  through  the  door  struck 
him  by  the  side  of  the  nose,  and  at  the  same  moment  another  ball, 
fired  through  the  window  at  the  other  side  of  the  room,  entered 
his  back,  and,  passing  through  his  body,  was  stopped  by  the  watch 
in  his  vest  pocket,  smashing  the  works.  He  fell  on  his  back 
exclaiming,  "lama  dead  man,"  and  did  not  speak  again. 

One  of  their  callers  had  left  a  six-shooting  pistol  with  the 
prisoners,  and,  when  Joseph  saw  his  brother  shot,  he  advanced  with 
this  weapon  to  the  door,  and  opening  it  a  few  inches,  snapped  each 
barrel  toward  the  men  on  the  other  side.  Three  barrels  missed 
fire,  but  each  of  the  three  that  exploded  seems  to  have  wounded  a 
man  ;  accounts  differ  as  to  the  seriousness  of  their  injuries.  While 
Joseph  was  firing,  Taylor  stood  by  him  armed  with  a  stout  hickory 
stick,  and  Richards  was  on  his  other  side  holding  a  cane.  As 
soon  as  Joseph's  firing,  which  had  checked  the  assailants  for  a 
moment,  ceased,  the  latter  stuck  their  weapons  through  the  partly 
opened  doorway,  and  fired  into  the  room.  Taylor  tried  to  parry 
the  guns  with  his  cudgel.  "  That's  right,  Brother  Taylor,  parry 
them  off  as  well  as  you  can,"  said  the  prophet,  and  these  are  the 
last  words  he  is  remembered  to  have  spoken.  The  assailants 
hesitated  to  enter  the  room,  perhaps  not  knowing  what  weapons 
the  Mormons  had,  and  Taylor  concluded  to  take  his  chances  of  a 

1  To  be  found  in  Burton's  "  City  of  the  Saints." 
X 


306  THE   STORY    OF   THE   MORMONS 

leap  through  an  open  window  opposite  the  door,  and  some  twenty- 
five  feet  from  the  ground.  But  as  he  was  about  to  jump  out,  a 
ball  struck  him  in  the  thigh,  depriving  him  of  all  power  of  motion. 
He  fell  inside  the  window,  and  as  soon  as  he  recovered  power  to 
move,  crawled  under  a  bed  which  stood  in  one  corner  of  the  room. 
The  men  in  the  hallway  continued  to  thrust  in  their  guns  and  fire, 
and  Richards  kept  trying  to  knock  aside  the  muzzles  with  his 
cane.  Taylor  in  this  way,  before  he  reached  the  bed,  received 
three  more  balls,  one  below  the  left  knee,  one  in  the  left  arm,  and 
another  in  the  left  hip. 

Almost  as  soon  as  Taylor  fell,  the  prophet  made  a  dash  for 
the  window.  As  he  was  part  way  out,  two  balls  fired  through  the 
doorway  struck  him,  and  one  from  outside  the  building  entered  his 
right  breast.  Richards  says :  "  He  fell  outward,  exclaiming  '  O 
Lord,  my  God.'  As  his  feet  went  out  of  the  window,  my  head 
went  in,  the  balls  whistling  all  around.  At  this  instant  the  cry 
was  raised,  '  He's  leaped  the  window,'  and  the  mob  on  the  stairs 
and  in  the  entry  ran  out.  I  withdrew  from  the  window,  thinking 
it  of  no  use  to  leap  out  on  a  hundred  bayonets,  then  around  Gen- 
eral Smith's  body.  Not  satisfied  with  this,  I  again  reached  my 
head  out  of  the  window  and  watched  some  seconds,  to  see  if  there 
were  any  signs  of  life,  regardless  of  my  own,  determined  to  see 
the  end  of  him  I  loved.  Being  fully  satisfied  that  he  was  dead, 
with  a  hundred  men  near  the  body  and  more  coming  round  the 
corner  of  the  gaol,  and  expecting  a  return  to  our  room,  I  rushed 
toward  the  prison  door  at  the  head  of  the  stairs."  Finding  the 
inner  doors  of  the  jail  unlocked,  Richards  dragged  Taylor  into  a 
cell  and  covered  him  with  an  old  mattress.  Both  expected  a  re- 
turn of  the  mob,  but  the  lynchers  disappeared  as  soon  as  they  satis- 
fied themselves  that  the  prophet  was  dead.  Richards  was  not 
injured  at  all,  although  his  large  size  made  him  an  ample  target. 

Most  Mormon  accounts  of  Smith's  death  say  that,  after  he  fell, 
the  body  was  set  up  against  a  well  curb  in  the  yard  and  riddled 
with  balls.  Taylor  mentions  this  report,  but  Richards,  who  specifi- 
cally says  that  he  saw  the  prophet  die,  does  not.  Governor  Ford's 
account  says  that  Smith  was  only  stunned  by  the  fall  and  was  shot 
in  the  yard.  Perhaps  the  original  authority  for  this  version  was  a 
lad  named  William  N.  Daniels,  who  accompanied  the  Warsaw  men 
to  Carthage,  and,  after  the  shooting,  went  to  Nauvoo  and  had  his 


THE   MURDER   OF   THE   PROPHET 


307 


story  published  by  the  Mormons  in  pamphlet  form,  with  two 
extravagant  illustrations,  in  which  one  of  the  assailants  is  repre- 
sented as  approaching  Smith  with  a  knife  to  cut  off  his  head.1 

The  bodies  of  the  two  brothers  were  removed  to  the  hotel  in 
Carthage,  and  were  taken  the  next  day  to  Nauvoo,  arriving  there 
'  about  three  o'clock  in  the  afternoon.  They  were  met  by  practi- 
cally the  entire  population,  and  a  procession  made  up  of  the  City 
Council,  the  generals  of  the  Legion  with  their  staffs,  the  Legion 
and  the  citizens  generally,  all  under  command  of  the  city  marshal, 
escorted  them  to  the  Nauvoo  Mansion,  where  addresses  were  made 
by  Dr.  Richards,  W.  W.  Phelps,  the  lawyers  Woods  and  Reid,  and 
Colonel  Markham.  The  utmost  grief  was  shown  by  the  Mormons, 
who  seemed  stunned  by  the  blow. 

The  burial  followed,  but  the  bodies  did  not  occupy  the  graves. 
Stenhouse  is  authority  for  the  statement  that,  fearing  a  grave  rob- 
bery (which  in  fact  occurred  the  next  night),  the  coffins  were  filled 
j  with  stones,  and  the  bodies  were  buried  secretly  beneath  the  unfin- 
;  ished  Temple.     Mistrustful  that  even  this  concealment  would  not 
\be  sufficient,  they  were  soon   taken  up  and   reburied   under  the 
brick  wall  back  of  the  Mansion  House.2 

Brigham  Young  said  at  the  conference  in  the  Temple  on  Octo- 
ber 8,  1845,  "We  will  petition  Sister  Emma,  in  the  name  of 
Israel's  God,  to  let  us  deposit  the  remains  of  Joseph  according  as 
he  has  commanded  us,  and  if  she  will  not  consent  to  it,  our  gar- 
ments are  clear."  She  did  not  consent.  For  the  following  state- 
ment about  the  future  disposition  of  the  bodies  I  am  indebted  to 

1  A  detailed  account  of  the  murder  of  the  Smiths,  and  events  connected  with  it,  was 
contributed  to  the  Atlantic  Monthly  for  December,  1869,  by  John  Hay.  This  is  accepted 
by  Kennedy  as  written  by  "  one  whose  opportunities  for  information  were  excellent, 
whose  fairness  cannot  be  questioned,  and  whose  ability  to  distinguish  the  true  from  the 
false  is  of  the  highest  order."  H.  H.  Bancroft,  whose  tone  is  always  pro- Mormon, 
alludes  to  this  article  as  "  simply  a  tissue  of  falsehoods."  In  reply  to  a  note  of  inquiry 
Secretary  Hay  wrote  to  the  author,  under  date  of  November  17,  1900:  "I  relied  more 
upon  my  memory  and  contemporary  newspapers  for  my  facts  than  on  certified  docu- 
ments. I  will  not  take  my  oath  to  everything  the  article  contains,  but  I  think  in 
the  main  it  is  correct."  This  article  says  that  Joseph  Smith  was  severely  wounded 
before  he  ran  to  the  window,  "  and  half  leaped,  half  fell  into  the  jail  yard  below. 
With  his  last  dying  energies  he  gathered  himself  up,  and  leaned  in  a  sitting  posture 
against  the  rude  stone  well  curb.  His  stricken  condition,  his  vague  wandering  glances, 
excited  no  pity  in  the  mob  thirsting  for  his  life.  A  squad  of  Missourians,  who  were 
standing  by  the  fence,  leveled  their  pieces  at  him,  and,  before  they  could  see  him  again 
for  the  smoke  they  made,  Joe  Smith  was  dead."    This  is  not  an  account  of  an  eye-witness. 

2  "  Rocky  Mountain  Saints,"  p.  174. 


308  THE    STORY    OF   THE   MORMONS 

the  grandson  of  the  prophet,  Mr.  Frederick  Madison  Smith,  one 
of  the  editors  of  the  Saints'  Herald  (Reorganized  Church)  at 
Lamoni,  Iowa,  dated  December  15,  1900:  — 

"The  burial  place  of  the  brothers  Joseph  and  Hyrum  has  always  remained 
a  secret,  being  known  only  to  a  very  few  of  the  immediate  family.  In  fact, 
unless  it  has  lately  been  revealed  to  others,  the  exact  spot  is  known  only  to  my 
father  and  his  brother.  Others  who  knew  the  secret  are  now  silent  in  death. 
The  reasons  for  the  secrecy  were  that  it  was  feared  that,  if  the  burial  place  was 
known  at  the  time,  there  might  have  been  an  inclination  on  the  part  of  the  ene- 
mies of  those  men  to  desecrate  their  bodies  and  graves.  There  is  not  now,  and 
probably  has  not  been  for  years,  any  danger  of  such  desecration,  and  the  only 
reason  I  can  see  for  still  keeping  it  a  secret  is  the  natural  disinclination  on  the 
part  of  the  family  to  talk  about  such  matters. 

"  However,  I  have  been  on  the  ground  with  my  father  when  I  knew  I  was 
standing  within  a  few  feet  of  where  the  remains  were  lying,  and  it  is  known  to 
many  about  where  that  spot  is.  It  is  a  short  distance  from  the  Nauvoo  House, 
on  the  bank  of  the  Mississippi.  The  lot  is  still  owned  by  the  family,  the  title 
being  in  my  father's  name.  There  is  not,  that  I  know,  any  intention  of  ever 
taking  the  bodies  to  Far  West  or  Independence,  Missouri.  The  chances  are  that 
their  resting  places  will  never  be  disturbed  other  than  to  erect  on  the  spot  a 
monument.  In  fact,  a  movement  is  now  under  way  to  raise  the  means  to  do  that. 
A  monument  fund  is  being  subscribed  to  by  the  members  of  the  church.  The 
monument  would  have  been  erected  by  the  family,  but  it  is  not  financially  able  to 
do  it." 

In  the  October  following,  indictments  were  found  against  Colo- 
nel Williams  of  the  Warsaw  regiment,  State  Senator  J.  C.  Davis, 
Editor  Sharp,  and  six  others,  including  three  who  were  said  to 
have  been  wounded  by  Smith's  pistol  shots,  but  the  sheriff  did  not 
succeed  in  making  any  arrests.  In  the  May  following  some  of  the 
accused  appeared  for  trial.  A  struck  jury  was  obtained,  but,  in 
the  existing  state  of  public  feeling,  an  acquittal  was  a  foregone 
conclusion.  The  guards  at  the  jail  would  identify  no  one,  and 
Daniels,  the  pamphlet  writer,  and  another  leading  witness  for  the 
prosecution  gave  contradictory  accounts. 

But  the  prophet,  according  to  Mormon  recitals,  did  not  go 
unavenged.  Lieutenant  Worrell,  who  commanded  the  detachment 
of  the  guards  at  the  jail,  was  shot  not  long  after,  as  we  shall  see. 
Murray  McConnell,  who  represented  the  governor  in  the  prose- 
cution of  the  alleged  lynchers,  was  assassinated  twenty-four  years 
later.  P.  P.  Pratt  gives  an  account  of  the  fate  of  other  "  perse- 
cutors."    The  arm  of  one  Townsend,  who  was  wounded  by  Joe's 


THE    MURDER   OF   THE    PROPHET  309 

pistol,  continued  to  rot  until  it  was  taken  off,  and  then  would  not 
heal.  A  colonel  of  the  Missouri  forces,  who  died  in  Sacramento 
in  1849,  "was  eaten  with  worms,  a  large,  black-headed  kind  of 
maggot,  seeming  a  half-pint  at  a  time."  Another  Missourian's 
"  face  and  jaw  on  one  side  literally  rotted,  and  half  his  face  actu- 
ally fell  off." » 

It  is  difficult  for  the  most  fair-minded  critic  to  find  in  the  char- 
acter of  Joseph  Smith  anything  to  commend,  except  an  abundance 
of  good-nature  which  made  him  personally  popular  with  the  body 
of  his  followers.  He  has  been  credited  with  power  as  a  leader, 
and  it  was  certainly  little  less  than  marvellous  that  he  could  main- 
tain his  leadership  after  his  business  failure  in  Ohio,  and  the  utter  in- 
break-down of  his  revealed  promises  concerning  a  Zion  in  Mis- 
souri. The  explanation  of  this  success  is  to  be  found  in  the  logi- 
cally impregnable  position  of  his  character  as  a  prophet,  so  long  as 
the  church  itself  retained  its  organization,  and  in  the  kind  of 
people  who  were  gathered  into  his  fold.  If  it  was  not  true  that 
he  received  the  golden  plates  from  an  angel ;  if  it  was  not  true 
that  he  translated  them  with  divine  assistance  ;  if  it  was  not  true 
that  he  received  from  on  high  the  "  revelations  "  vouchsafed  for 
the  guidance  of  the  church,  —  then  there  was  no  new  Bible,  no  new 
revelation,  no  Mormon  church.  If  Smith  was  pulled  down,  the 
whole  church  structure  must  crumble  with  him.  Lee,  referring 
to  the  days  in  Missouri,  says,  "  Every  Mormon,  if  true  to  his 
faith,  believed  as  freely  in  Joseph  Smith  and  his  holy  character  as 
they  did  that  God  existed."2  Some  of  the  Mormons  who  knew 
Smith  and  his  career  in  Missouri  and  Illinois  were  so  convinced 
of  the  ridiculousness  of  his  claims  that  they  proposed,  after  the 
gathering  in  Utah,  to  drop  him  entirely.  Proof  of  this,  and  of 
Brigham  Young's  realization  of  the  impossibility  of  doing  so,  is 
found  in  Young's  remarks  at  the  conference  which  received  the 
public  announcement  of  the  "revelation"  concerning  polygamy. 
Referring  to  the  suggestion  that  had  been  made,  "  Don't  mention 
Joseph  Smith,  never  mention  the  Book  of  Mormon  and  Zion,  and 
all  the  people  will  follow  you,"  Young  boldly  declared  :  "What  I 
have  received  from  the  Lord,  I  have  received  by  Joseph  Smith ; 
he  was  the  instrument  made  use  of.  If  I  drop  him,  I  must  drop 
these   principles.      They  have   not   been    revealed,    declared,    or 

1  Pratt's  "  Autobiography,"  pp.  475-476.  2  "  Mormonism  Unveiled,"  p.  76. 


3io  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

explained  by  any  other  man  since  the  days  of  the  apostles."  This 
view  is  accepted  by  the  Mormons  in  Utah  to-day. 

If  it  seems  still  more  surprising  that  Smith's  associates  placed 
so  little  restraint  on  his  business  schemes,  it  must  be  remembered 
that  none  of  his  early  colaborers —  Rigdon,  Harris,  Cowdery,  and 
the  rest — was  a  better  business  man  than  he,  and  that  he  absolutely 
brooked  no  interference.  It  was  Smith  who  decided  every  impor- 
tant step,  as,  for  instance,  the  land  purchases  in  and  around 
Nauvoo  ;  and  men  who  would  let  him  originate  were  compelled  to 
let  him  carry  out.  We  have  seen  how  useless  better  business  men 
like  the  Laws  found  it  to  argue  with  him  on  any  practical  ques- 
tion. The  length  to  which  he  dared  go  in  discountenancing  any 
restriction,  even  regarding  his  moral  ideas,  is  illustrated  in  an  inci- 
dent related  in  his  autobiography.1  At  a  service  on  Sunday,  Novem- 
ber 7,  1 84 1,  in  Nauvoo,  an  elder  named  Clark  ventured  to  reprove 
the  brethren  for  their  lack  of  sanctity,  enjoining  them  to  solemnity 
and  temperance.  "  I  reproved  him,"  says  the  prophet,  "  as  phari- 
saical  and  hypocritical,  and  not  edifying  the  people,  and  showed 
the  Saints  what  temperance,  faith,  virtue,  charity,  and  truth  were. 
I  charged  the  Saints  not  to  follow  the  example  of  the  adversary 
[non-Mormons]  in  accusing  the  brethren,  and  said,  '  If  you  do  not 
accuse  each  other,  God  will  not  accuse  you.  If  you  have  no 
accuser,  you  will  enter  heaven ;  if  you  will  follow  the  revelations 
and  instructions  which  God  gives  you  through  me,  I  will  take  you 
into  heaven  as  my  back  load.  If  you  will  not  accuse  me,  I  will 
not  accuse  you.  If  you  will  throw  a  cloak  of  charity  over  my  sins, 
I  will  over  yours  —  for  charity  covereth  a  multitude  of  sins.  What 
many  people  call  sin  is  not  sin.  I  do  many  things  to  break  down 
superstition.' "  A  congregation  that  would  accept  such  teaching 
without  a  protest,  would  follow  their  leader  in  any  direction  which 
he  chose  to  indicate. 

Smith  was  the  farthest  possible  from  being  what  Spinoza  has 
been  called,  "  a  God-intoxicated  man."  Real  reverence  for  sacred 
things  did  not  enter  into  his  mental  equipment.  A  story  illustrat- 
ing his  lack  of  reverence  for  what  he  called  "  long-faced  "  brethren 
was  told  by  J.  M.  Grant  in  Salt  Lake  City.  A  Baptist  minister, 
who  talked  much  of  "  my  dee-e-ar  brethren,"  called  on  Smith  in 
Nauvoo,  and,  after  conversing  with  him  for  a  short  time,  stood  up 

1  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XVIII,  p.  743. 


THE   MURDER   OF   THE   PROPHET  311 

before  Smith  and  asked  in  solemn  tones  if  it  were  possible  that  he 
saw  a  man  who  was  a  prophet  and  who  had  conversed  with  the 
Saviour.  "  '  Yes,'  says  the  prophet,  '  I  don't  know  but  you  do ; 
would  you  not  like  to  wrestle  with  me  ? '  After  he  had  whirled 
around  a  few  times,  like  a  duck  shot  in  the  head,  he  concluded 
that  his  piety  had  been  awfully  shocked."  1 

In  manhood  Smith  was  about  six  feet  tall,  weighing  something 
over  two  hundred  pounds.  From  among  a  number  of  descriptions 
of  him  by  visitors  at  Nauvoo,  the  following  may  be  cited.  Josiah 
Quincy,  describing  his  arrival  at  what  he  calls  "the  tavern"  in 
Nauvoo,  in  May,  1844,  gives  this  impression  of  the  prophet :  "  Pre- 
eminent among  the  stragglers  at  the  door  stood  a  man  of  command- 
ing appearance,  clad  in  the  costume  of  a  journeyman  carpenter 
when  about  his  work.  He  was  a  hearty,  athletic  fellow,  with  blue  | 
eyes  standing  prominently  out  on  his  light  complexion,  a  long  nose, ' ; 
and  a  retreating  forehead.  He  wore  striped  pantaloons,  a  linen 
jacket  which  had  not  lately  seen  the  wash-tub,  and  a  beard  of  three 
days'  growth.  A  fine-looking  man,  is  what  the  passer-by  would 
instinctively  have  murmured  upon  meeting  the  remarkable  indi- 
vidual who  had  fashioned  the  mould  which  was  to  shape  the  feelings 
of  so  many  thousands  of  his  fellow-mortals."2 

The  Rev.  Henry  Caswall,  M.A.,  who  had  an  interview  with  the 
prophet  at  Nauvoo,  in  1842,  thus  describes  him  :  "  He  is  a  coarse, 
plebeian,  sensual  person  in  aspect,  and  his  countenance  exhibits  a> 
curious  mixture  of  the  knave  and  the  clown.  His  hands  are  large 
and  fat,  and  on  one  of  his  fingers  he  wears  a  massive  gold  ring, 
upon  which  I  saw  an  inscription.  His  eyes  appear  deficient  in  that 
open  and  straightforward  expression  which  often  characterizes  an 
honest  man." 

John  Taylor  had  death-casts  taken  of  the  faces  of  Joseph  and 
Hyrum  after  their  murder.  By  the  aid  of  these  and  of  sketches 
of  the  brothers  which  he  had  secured  while  they  were  living,  he 
had  busts  of  them  made  by  a  modeller  in  Europe  named  Gahagan, 
and  these  were  offered  to  the  Saints  throughout  the  world,  for  a 
price,  of  course.3 

The  proofs  already  cited  of  Smith's  immorality  are  convincing. 

1  Journal  of  Discourses,  Vol.  Ill,  p.  67. 

2  "  Figures  of  the  Past,"  p.  380. 

3  Millennial  Star,  November  I,  1850. 


312  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

Caswall  names  a  number  of  occasions  on  which,  he  charges,  the 
prophet  was  intoxicated  after  his  settlement  in  Nauvoo.  He  relates 
that  on  one  of  these,  when  Smith  was  asked  how  it  happened  that 
a  prophet  of  the  Lord  could  get  drunk,  Smith  answered  that  it  was 
necessary  that  he  should  do  so  to  prevent  the  Saints  from  worship- 
ping him  as  a  god  ! 1 

No  Mormon  ever  concedes  that  proof  of  Smith's  personal  failings 
affects  his  character  as  a  prophet.  A  Mormon  doctor,  with  whom 
Caswall  argued  at  Nauvoo,  said  that  Smith  might  be  a  murderer 
and  an  adulterer,  and  yet  be  a  true  prophet.  He  cited  St.  Peter 
as  saying  that,  in  his  time,  David  had  not  yet  ascended  into  heaven 
(Acts  ii.  34) ;  David  was  in  hell  as  a  murderer ;  so  if  Smith  was 
"as  infamous  as  David,  and  even  denied  his  own  revelations,  that 
would  not  affect  the  revelations  which  God  had  given  him." 

1  "Mormonism  and  its  Author,"  1852. 


CHAPTER   XV 
AFTER   SMITH'S    DEATH  —  RIGDON'S   LAST   DAYS 

The  murder  of  the  Smiths  caused  a  panic,  not  among  the 
Mormons,  but  among  the  other  inhabitants  of  Hancock  County, 
who  looked  for  summary  vengeance  at  the  hands  of  the  prophet's 
followers,  with  their  famous  Legion  to  support  them.  The  state 
militia  having  been  disbanded,  the  people  considered  themselves 
without  protection,  and  Governor  Ford  shared  their  apprehension. 
Carthage  was  at  once  almost  depopulated,  the  people  fleeing  in 
wagons,  on  horseback,  and  on  foot,  and  most  of  the  citizens  of 
Warsaw  placed  the  river  between  them  and  their  enemies.  "  I  was 
sensible,"  says  Governor  Ford,  "  that  my  command  was  at  an  end ; 
that  my  destruction  was  meditated  as  well  as  the  Mormons',  and 
that  I  could  not  reasonably  confide  longer  in  one  party  or  the  other." 
The  panic-stricken  executive  therefore  set  out  at  once  for  Quincy, 
forty  miles  from  the  scene  of  the  murder. 

From  that  city  the  governor  issued  a  statement  to  the  people 
of  the  state,  reciting  the  events  leading  up  to  the  recent  tragedy, 
and,  under  date  of  June  29,  ordered  the  enlistment  of  as  many  men 
as  possible  in  the  militia  of  Adams,  Marquette,  Pike,  Brown,  Schuy- 
ler, Morgan,  Scott,  Cass,  Fulton,  and  McDonough  counties,  and  the 
regiments  of  General  Stapp's  brigade,  for  a  twelve  days'  campaign. 
The  independent  companies  of  all  sorts,  in  the  same  counties,  were 
also  told  to  hold  themselves  in  readiness,  and  the  federal  govern- 
ment was  asked  to  station  a  force  of  five  hundred  men  from  the 
regular  army  in  Hancock  County.  This  last  request  was  not  com- 
plied with.  The  governor  then  sent  Colonel  Fellows  and  Captain 
Jonas  to  Nauvoo  by  the  first  boat,  to  find  out  the  intentions  of  the 
Mormons  as  well  as  those  of  the  people  of  Warsaw. 

Meanwhile  the  voice  of  the  Mormon  leaders  was  for  peace. 
Willard  Richards,  John  Taylor,  and  Samuel  H.  Smith  united  in  a 

313 


3i4 


THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 


letter  (written  in  the  first  person  singular  by  Richards),  on  the 
night  of  the  murders,  addressed  to  the  prophet's  widow,  General 
Deming  (commanding  at  Carthage),  and  others,  which  said :  — 

"  The  people  of  the  county  are  greatly  excited,  and  fear  the  Mormons  will 
come  out  and  take  vengeance.  I  have  pledged  my  word  the  Mormons  will  stay 
at  home  as  soon  as  they  can  be  informed,  and  no  violence  will  be  on  their  part. 
And  say  to  my  brethren  in  Nauvoo,  in  the  name  of  the  Lord,  be  still,  be  patient ; 
only  let  such  friends  as  choose  come  here  to  see  the  bodies.  Mr.  Taylor's 
wounds  are  dressed  and  not  serious.     I  am  sound." 

This  quieting  advice  was  heeded  without  even  a  protest,  and 
after  the  funeral  of  the  victims  the  Mormons  voted  unanimously  to 
depend  on  the  law  for  retribution. 

While  things  temporal  in  Nauvoo  remained  quiet,  there  were 
deep  feeling  and  great  uncertainty  concerning  the  future  of  the 
church.  The  First  Presidency  had  consisted,  since  the  action  of 
the  conference  at  Far  West  in  1837,  of  Joseph  and  Hyrum  Smith 
and  Sidney  Rigdon.  Two  of  these  were  now  dead.  Did  this 
leave  Rigdon  as  the  natural  head,  did  Smith's  son  inherit  the  suc- 
cessorship,  or  did  the  supreme  power  rest  with  the  Twelve 
Apostles  ?  Discussion  of  this  matter  brought  out  many  plans, 
including  a  general  reorganization  of  the  church,  and  the  appoint- 
ment of  a  trustee  or  a  president.  Rigdon  had  been  sent  to  Pitts- 
burg to  build  up  a  church,1  and  Brigham  Young  was  electioneering 
in  New  Hampshire  for  Smith.  Accordingly,  Phelps,  Richards, 
and  Taylor,  on  July  1,  issued  a  brief  statement  to  the  church  at 
large,  asking  all  to  await  the  assembling  of  the  Twelve. 

Rigdon  arrived  in  Nauvoo  on  August  3,  and  preached  the  next 
day  in  the  grove.  He  said  the  Lord  had  shown  him  a  vision,  and 
that  there  must  be  a  "guardian"  appointed  to  "build  the  church 
up  to  Joseph "  as  he  had  begun  it.  Cannon's  account,  in  the 
"  Juvenile  Instructor,"  says  that  at  a  meeting  at  John  Taylor's  the 
next  day  Rigdon  declared  that  the  church  was  in  confusion  and 
must  have  a  head,  and  he  wanted  a  special  meeting  called  to 
choose  a  "  guardian."  On  the  evening  of  August  6,  Young,  H.  C. 
Kimball,  Lyman  Wight,  Orson  Pratt,  Orson  Hyde,  and  Wilford 
Woodruff   arrived    from   the    East.      A  meeting   of   the   Twelve 

1  John  Taylor  so  stated  at  Rigdon's  coming  trial.  This,  perhaps,  contradicts  the 
statement  in  the  Cannons'  "  Life  of  Brigham  Young  "  that  Rigdon  had  gone  there  "  to 
escape  the  turmoils  of  Nauvoo." 


AFTER   SMITH'S   DEATH  — RIGDON'S   LAST   DAYS  315 

Apostles,  the  High  Council,  and  high  priests  was  called  for 
August  7,  at  4  p.m.,  which  Rigdon  attended.  He  declared  that  in 
a  vision  at  Pittsburg  it  had  been  shown  to  him  that  he  had  been 
ordained  a  spokesman  to  Joseph,  and  that  he  must  see  that  the 
church  was  governed  in  a  proper  manner.  "  I  propose,"  said  he, 
"  to  be  a  guardian  of  the  people.  In  this  I  have  discharged  my 
duty  and  done  what  God  has  commanded  me,  and  the  people  can 
please  themselves,  whether  they  accept  me  or  not." 

A  special  meeting  of  the  church  was  held  on  the  morning  of 
August  8.     Rigdon  had  previously  addressed  a  gathering  in  the 
grove,  but  he  had  not  been  winning  adherents.     As  we  have  seen, 
he  had  alienated  himself  from  the  men  who  had  accepted  Smith's 
new   social   doctrines,   and    a    plan  which    he    proposed,   that  the 
church  should  move  to  Pennsylvania,  appealed  neither  to  the  good 
judgment  nor  the  pecuniary  interests  of  those  to  whom  it  was  pre- 
sented.    Young  made  an  address  at  this  meeting  which  so  wrought 
up  his   hearers  that   they  declared  that  they  saw  the  mantle    of 
Joseph  fall  upon  him.     When  he  asked,  "  Do  you  want  a  guardian, 
a  prophet,  a  spokesman,  or  what  do  you  want  ?  "  not  a  hand  went 
up.     Young  then  went  on  to  give  his  own  view  of  the  situation ; 
his  argument  pointed  to  a  single  result  —  the  demolition  of  Rig- 
don's  claim  and  the  establishment  of  the  supreme  authority  of  the 
Twelve,  of  whom  Young  himself  was  the  head.     W.  W.  Phelps, 
P.  P.  Pratt,  and  others  sustained  Young's  view.     Before  a  vote  was 
taken,  according  to  the  minutes  quoted,  Rigdon  refused  to  have 
his  name  voted  on  as  "spokesman"  or  guardian.     The  meeting 
then  voted  unanimously  in  favor  of  "supporting  the  Twelve  in 
their  calling,"  and  also  that  the  Twelve  should  appoint  two  Bishops 
to  act  as  trustees  for  the  church,  and  that  the  completion  of  the 
Temple  should  be  pushed.1 

On  August  15  Young,  as  president  of  the  Twelve,  issued  an 
epistle  to  the  church  in  all  the  world  in  which  he  said:  — 

"  Let  no  man  presume  for  a  moment  that  his  [the  Prophet's]  place  will  be 
filled  by  another ;  for,  remember  he  stands  in  his  own  place,  and  always  will,  and 
the  Twelve  Apostles  of  this  dispensation  stand  in  their  own  place,  and  always 
will,  both  in  time  and  eternity,  to  minister,  preside,  and  regulate  the  affairs  of  the 
whole  church." 

1  For  minutes  of  this  church  meeting,  see  Times  and  Seasons,  Vol.  V,  p.  637.  For 
a  full  account  of  the  happenings  at  Nauvoo,  from  August  3  to  8,  see  "  Historical  Record  " 
(Mormon),  Vol.  VIII,  pp.  785-800. 


3I6  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

The  epistle  told  the  Saints  also  that  "  it  is  not  wisdom  for  the 
Saints  to  have  anything  to  do  with  politics,  voting,  or  president- 
making  at  present." 

Rigdon  remained  in  Nauvoo  after  the  decision  of  the  church  in 
favor  of  the  Twelve,  preaching  as  of  old,  declaring  that  he  was  with 
the  brethren  heart  and  soul,  and  urging  the  completion  of  the 
Temple.  But  Young  regarded  him  as  a  rival,  and  determined  to 
put  their  strength  to  a  test.  Accordingly,  on  Tuesday,  September 
3,  he  had  a  notice  printed  in  the  Neighbor  directing  Rigdon  to  appear 
on  the  following  Sunday  for  trial  before  a  High  Council  presided 
over  by  Bishop  Whitney.  Rigdon  did  not  attend  this  trial,  not 
only  because  he  was  not  well,  but  because,  after  a  conference  with 
his  friends,  he  decided  that  the  case  against  him  was  made  up  and 
that  his  presence  would  do  no  good.1 

When  the  High  Council  met,  Young  expressed  a  disbelief  in 
Rigdon's  reported  illness.  He  said  that,  having  heard  that  Rigdon 
had  ordained  men  to  be  prophets,  priests,  and  kings,  he  and  Orson 
Hyde  had  obtained  from  Rigdon  a  confession  that  he  had  per- 
formed the  act  of  ordination,  and  that  he  believed  he  held  author- 
ity above  any  man  in  the  church.  That  evening  eight  of  the 
Twelve  had  visited  him  at  his  house,  and,  getting  confirmation  of  his 
position,  had  sent  a  committee  to  him  to  demand  his  license. 
This  he  had  refused  to  surrender,  saying,  "I  did  not  receive  it 
from  you,  neither  shall  I  give  it  up  to  you."  Then  came  the  order 
for  his  trial. 

Orson  Hyde  presented  the  case  against  Rigdon  in  detail.  He 
declared  that,  when  they  demanded  the  surrender  of  his  license, 
Rigdon  threatened  to  turn  traitor,  "  His  own  language  was,  '  Inas- 
much as  you  have  demanded  my  license,  I  shall  feel  it  my  duty  to 
publish  all  your  secret  meetings,  and  all  the  history  of  the  secret 
works  of  this  church,  in  the  public  journals.'2      He  intimated  that 

1  For  the  minutes  of  this  High  Council,  see  Times  and  Seasons,  Vol.  V,  pp.  647-655, 
660-667. 

2  Lee  thus  explains  one  of  these  "secret  works":  "The  same  winter  [1843]  he 
[Smith]  organized  what  was  called  'The  Council  of  Fifty.'  This  was  a  confidential 
organization.  This  Council  was  designated  as  a  lawmaking  department,  but  ljp  record 
was  ever  kept  of  its  doings,  or,  if  kept,  they  were  burned  at  the  close  of  each  meeting. 
Whenever  anything  of  importance  was  on  foot,  this  Council  was  called  to  deliberate 
upon  it.  The  Council  was  called  the  '  Living  Constitution.'  Joseph  said  that  no  legis- 
lature could  enact  laws  that  would  meet  every  case,  or  attain  the  ends  of  justice  in  all 
respects."  —  "  Mormonism  Unveiled,"  p.  173. 


AFTER   SMITH'S   DEATH  — RIGDON'S   LAST   DAYS  317 

it  would  bring  a  mob  upon  us."  Parley  P.  Pratt,  the  member  of 
Rigdon's  old  church  in  Ohio,  who,  according  to  his  own  account, 
first  called  Rigdon's  attention  to  the  Mormon  Bible,  next  spoke 
against  his  old  friend. 

After  Amasa  Lyman,  John  Taylor,  and  H.  C.  Kimball  had 
spoken  against  Rigdon,  Brigham  Young  took  the  floor  again,  and 
in  reply  to  the  threat  that  Rigdon  would  expose  the  secrets  of  the 
church,  he  denounced  him  in  the  following  terms :  — 

"  Brother  Sidney  says,  if  we  go  to  opposing  him,  he  will  tell  our  secrets.  But 
I  would  say,  '  O,  don't,  brother  Sidney  !  don:t  tell  our  secrets  —  O,  don't  !'  But  if 
he  tells  our  secrets,  we  will  tell  his.  Tit  for  tat.  He  has  had  long  visions  in 
Pittsburg,  revealing  to  him  wonderful  iniquity  among  the  Saints.  Now,  if  he 
knows  of  so  much  iniquity,  and  has  got  such  wonderful  power,  why  don't  he  purge 
it  out  ?  He  professes  to  have  the  keys  of  David.  Wonderful  power  and  revela- 
tions! And  he  will  publish  our  iniquity.  O,  dear  brother  Sidney,  don't  publish 
our  iniquity  !  Now  don't  !  If  Sidney  Rigdon  undertakes  to  publish  all  our 
secrets,  as  he  says,  he  will  lie  the  first  jump  he  takes.  If  he  knew  of  all  our 
iniquity  why  did  he  not  publish  it  sooner  ?  If  there  is  so  much  iniquity  in  the 
church  as  you  talk  of,  Elder  Rigdon,  and  you  have  known  of  it  so  long,  you  are  a 
black-hearted  wretch  because  you  have  not  published  it  sooner.  If  there  is  not 
this  iniquity,  you  are  a  black-hearted  wretch  for  endeavoring  to  bring  a  mob  upon 
us,  to  murder  innocent  men,  women  and  children.  Any  man  that  says  the 
Twelve  are  bogus-makers,  or  adulterers,  or  wicked  men  is  a  liar  ;  and  all  who  say 
such  things  shall  have  the  fate  of  liars,  where  there  is  weeping  and  gnashing  of 
teeth.  Who  is  there  who  has  seen  us  do  such  things  ?  No  man.  The  spirit 
that  I  am  of  tramples  such  slanderous  wickedness  under  my  feet."  J 

At  this  point  the  proceedings  had  a  rather  startling  interrup- 
tion. William  Marks,  president  of  the  Stake  at  Nauvoo,  and  a 
member  of  the  High  Council  (who,  as  we  have  seen,  had  rebelled 
against  the  doctrine  of  polygamy  when  it  was  presented  to  him) 
took  the  floor  in  Rigdon's  defence.     But  it  was  in  vain. 

W.  W.  Phelps  moved  that  Rigdon  "  be  cut  off  from  the  church,  ■■ 
and  delivered  over  to  the  buffetings  of  Satan  until  he  repents."  | 
The  vote  by  the  Council  in  favor  of  this  motion  was  unanimous, 
but  when  it  was  offered  to  the  church,  some  ten  members  voted 

1  William  Small,  in  a  letter  to  the  Pittsburg  Messenger  and  Advocate,  p.  70,  relates 
that  when  he  met  Rigdon  on  his  arrival  at  St.  Louis  by  boat  after  this  trial,  Orson 
Hyde,  who  was  also  a  passenger  and  thought  Small  was  with  the  Twelve,  addressed 
Small,  asking  him  to  intercede  with  Rigdon  not  to  publish  the  secret  acts  of  the  church, 
and  telling  him  that  if  Rigdon  would  come  back  and  stand  equal  with  the  Twelve  and 
counsel  with  them,  he  would  pledge  himself,  in  behalf  of  the  Twelve,  that  all  they  had 
said  against  Rigdon  would  be  revoked. 


3i8  THE    STORY   OF  THE   MORMONS 

against  it.  Phelps  at  once  moved  that  all  who  had  voted  to  follow 
Rigdon  should  be  suspended  until  they  could  be  tried  by  the  High 
Council,  and  this  was  agreed  to  unanimously,  with  an  amendment 
including  the  words,  "  or  shall  hereafter  be  found  advocating  his 
principles."  After  compelling  President  Marks,  by  formal  motion, 
to  acknowledge  his  satisfaction  with  the  action  of  the  church,  the 
meeting  adjourned. 

Rigdon's  next  steps  certainly  gave  substance  to  his  brother's 
theory  that  his  mind  was  unbalanced,  the  family  having  noticed 
his  peculiarities  from  the  time  he  was  thrown  from  a  horse,  when 
a  boy.1  He  soon  returned  to  Pittsburg,  Pennsylvania,  where  his 
first  step  was  to  "resuscitate"  the  Messenger  and  Advocate,  which 
had  died  at  Kirtland.  In  a  signed  article  in  the  first  number  he 
showed  that  he  then  intended  "  to  contend  for  the  same  doctrines, 
order  of  government,  and  discipline  maintained  by  that  paper 
when  first  published  at  Kirtland,"  in  other  words,  to  uphold  the 
Mormon  church  as  he  had  known  it,  with  himself  at  its  head.  But 
his  old  desire  for  original  leadership  got  the  better  of  him,  and 
after  a  conference  of  the  membership  he  had  gathered  around 
him,  held  in  Pittsburg  in  April,  1845,  at  which  he  was  voted 
"  First  President,  Prophet,  Seer,  Revelator,  and  Translator,"  he 
issued  an  address  to  the  public  in  which  he  declared  that  his  Church 
of  Christ  was  neither  a  branch  nor  connection  of  the  church  at 
Nauvoo,  and  that  it  received  members  of  the  Church  of  Latter- 
Day  Saints  only  after  baptism  and  repentance.2  In  an  article  in 
his  organ,  on  July  15,  1845,  he  made  assertions  like  these:  "The 
Church  of  Christ  and  the  Mormons  are  so  widely  different  in  their 
respective  beliefs  that  they  are  of  necessity  opposed  to  one  another, 
as  far  as  religion  is  concerned.  .  .  .  There  is  scarcely  one  point  of 
similarity.  .  .  .  The  Church  of  Christ  has  obtained  a  distinctive 
character." 

Rigdon  told  the  April  conference  that  he  had  one  unceasing 
desire,  namely,  to  know  whether  God  would  accept  their  work.  At 
the  suggestion  of  the  spirit,  he  had  taken  some  of  the  brethren 
into  a  room  in  his  house  that  morning,  and  had  consecrated  them. 
What  there  occurred  he  thus  described  :  — 

"  After  the  washing  and  anointing,  and  the  patriarchal  seal,  as  the  Lord  had 
directed  me,  we  kneeled  and  in  solemn  prayer  asked  God  to  accept  the  work  we 

1  Baptist  Witness,  March  1,  1875.  2  Pittsburg  Messenger  and  Advocate,  p.  220. 


AFTER   SMITHS   DEATH  — RIGDON'S   LAST   DAYS 


319 


had  done.  During  the  time  of  prayer  there  appeared  over  our  heads  in  the  room 
a  ray  of  light  forming  a  hollow  square,  inside  of  which  stood  a  company  of 
heavenly  messengers,  each  with  a  banner  in  his  hand,  with  their  eyes  looking 
downward  upon  us,  their  countenance  expressive  of  the  deep  interest  they  felt  in 
what  was  passing  on  the  earth.  There  also  appeared  heavenly  messengers  on 
horseback,  with  crowns  upon  their  heads,  and  plumes  floating  in  the  air,  dressed 
in  glorious  attire,  until,  like  Elisha,  we  cried  in  our  hearts,  '  The  chariots  of 
Israel  and  the  horsemen  thereof.'  Even  my  little  son  of  fourteen  years  of  age 
saw  the  vision,  and  gazed  with  great  astonishment,  saying  that  he  thought  his 
imagination  was  running  away  with  him.  After  which  we  arose  and  lifted  our 
hands  to  heaven  in  holy  convocation  to  God ;  at  which  time  was  shown  an  angel 
in  heaven  registering  the  acceptance  of  our  work,  and  the  decree  of  the  Great 
God  that  the  kingdom  is  ours  and  we  shall  prevail. " 

While  the  conference  was  in  session,  Pittsburg  was  visited  by  a 
disastrous  conflagration.  Rigdon  prayed  for  the  sufferers  by  the 
fire  and  asked  God  to  check  it.  "  During  the  prayer  "  (this  quota- 
tion is  from  the  official  report  of  the  conference  in  the  Messenger 
and  Advocate,  p.  186),  "an  escort  of  the  heavenly  messengers 
that  had  hovered  around  us  during  the  time  of  this  conference 
were  seen  leaving  the  room ;  the  course  of  the  wind  was  instantly 
changed,  and  the  violence  of  the  flames  was  stayed." 

Rigdon's  attempt  to  build  up  a  new  church  in  the  East  was  a 
failure.  Urgent  appeals  in  its  behalf  in  his  periodical  were  made 
in  vain.  The  people  addressed  could  not  be  cajoled  with  his 
stories  of  revelations  and  miraculous  visions,  which  both  the  secu- 
lar and  religious  press  held  up  to  ridicule,  and  he  had  no  system 
of  foreign  immigration  to  supply  ignorant  recruits.  He  soon  after 
took  up  his  residence  in  Friendship,  Allegheny  County,  New  York, 
where  he  died  at  the  residence  of  his  son-in-law,  Earl  Wingate,  on 
July  14,  1876.  In  an  obituary  sketch  of  him  the  Standard  of  that 
place  said :  — 

"  He  was  approached  by  the  messengers  of  young  Joseph  Smith  of  Piano,  111., 
but  he  refused  to  converse  or  answer  any  communication  which  in  any  way 
would  bring  him  into  notice  in  connection  with  the  Mormon  church  of  to-day. 
It  was  his  daily  custom  to  visit  the  post-office,  get  the  daily  paper,  read  and  con- 
verse upon  the  chief  topics  of  the  day.  He  often  engaged  in  a  friendly  dispute 
with  the  local  ministers,  and  always  came  out  first  best  on  New  Testament  doc- 
trinal matters.  Patriarchal  in  appearance,  and  kindly  in  address,  he  was  often 
approached  by  citizens  and  strangers  with  a  view  to  obtaining  something  of  the 
unrecorded  mysteries  of  his  life  ;  but  citizen,  stranger  and  persistent  reporter  all 
alike  failed  in  eliciting  any  information  as  to  his  knowledge  of  the  Mormon  im- 
posture, the  motives  of  his  early  life,  or  the  religious  faith,  fears  and  hopes  of  his 


320  THE    STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

declining  years.  Once  or  twice  he  spoke  excitedly,  in  terms  of  scorn,  of  those 
who  attributed  to  him  the  manufacture  of  the  Mormon  Bible ;  but  beyond  this, 
nothing.  His  library  was  small ;  he  left  no  manuscripts,  and  refused  persistently 
to  have  a  picture  of  himself  taken.  It  can  only  be  said  that  he  was  a  compound 
of  ability,  versatility,  honesty,  duplicity,  and  mystery." 

One  person  succeeded  in  drawing  out  from  Rigdon  in  his  later 
years  a  few  words  on  his  relations  with  the  Mormon  church. 
This  was  Charles  L.  Woodward,  a  New  York  bookseller,  who 
some  years  ago  made  an  important  collection  of  Mormon  litera- 
ture. While  making  this  collection  he  sent  an  inquiry  to  Rigdon, 
and  received  a  reply,  dated  May  25,  1873.  After  apologizing  for 
his  handwriting  on  account  of  his  age  and  paralysis,  the  letter 
says : — 

"  We  know  nothing  about  the  people  called  Mormons  now.1  The  Lord  noti- 
fied us  that  the  Church  of  Jesus  Christ  of  Latter-Day  Saints  were  going  to  be 
destroyed,  and  for  us  to  leave.  We  did  so,  and  the  Smiths  were  killed  a  few 
days  after  we  started.  Since  that,  I  have  had  no  connection  with  any  of  the 
people  who  staid  and  built  up  to  themselves  churches,  and  chose  to  themselves 
leaders  such  as  they  chose,  and  then  framed  their  own  religion. 

"  The  Church  of  Latter-Day  Saints  had  three  books  that  they  acknowledged 
as  Canonical,  the  Bible,  the  Book  of  Mormon,  and  the  Commandments.  For 
the  existence  of  that  church  there  had  to  be  a  revelater,  one  who  received  the 
word  of  the  Lord ;  a  spokesman,  one  inspired  of  God  to  expound  all  revelation, 
so  that  the  church  might  all  be  of  one  faith.  Without  these  two  men  the  Church 
of  Latter-Uay  Saints  could  not  exist.  This  order  ceased  to  exist,  being  over- 
come by  the  violence  of  armed  men,  by  whom  houses  were  beaten  down  by  can- 
non which  the  assalents  had  furnished  themselves  with. 

"Thus  ended  the  Church  of  Jesus  Christ  of  Latter-Day  Saints,  and  it 
never  can  move  again  till  the  Lord  inspires  men  and  women  to  believe  it.  All 
the  societies  and  assemblies  of  men  collected  together  since  then  is  not  the 
Church  of  Jesus  Christ  of  Latter-Day  Saints,  nor  never  can  there  be  such  a 
church  till  the  Lord  moves  it  by  his  own  power,  as  he  did  the  first. 

"  Should  you  fall  in  with  one  who  was  of  the  Church  [of]  Christ,  though  now 
of  advanced  age,  you  will  find  one  deep  red  in  the  revelations  of  heaven.  But 
many  of  them  are  dead,  and  many  of  them  have  turned  away,  so  there  are  few  left. 

"I  have  a  manuscript  paper  in  my  possession,  written  with  my  own  hands 
while  in  my  80th.  year,  but  I  am  to  poor  to  do  anything  with  it;  and  there- 

1  The  statement  has  been  published  that,  after  Young  had  established  himself  in 
Utah,  he  received  from  Rigdon  an  intimation  that  the  latter  would  be  willing  to  join  him. 
I  could  obtain  no  confirmation  of  this  in  Salt  Lake  City.  On  the  contrary,  a  leading 
member  of  the  church  informed  me  that  Young  invited  Rigdon  to  join  the  Mormons  in 
Utah,  but  that  Rigdon  did  not  accept  the  invitation. 


AFTER   SMITH'S   DEATH —  RIGDON'S   LAST   DAYS  32 1 

fore  it  must  remain  where  it  [is] .  During  the  great  fight  of  affliction  I  have  had, 
I  have  lost  all  my  property,  but  I  struggle  along  in  poverty  to  which  I  am  con- 
signed.    I  have  finished  all  I  feel  necessary  to  write. 

"  Respectfully, 

"Sidney  Rigdon."  1 

Rigdon's  affirmation  of  his  belief  in  Smith  as  a  prophet  and  the 
Mormon  Bible  when  he  returned  to  Pennsylvania  was  proclaimed 
by  the  Mormons  as  proof  that  there  was  no  truth  in  the  Spauld- 
ing  manuscript  story,  but  it  carries  no  weight  as  such  evidence. 
Rigdon  burned  all  his  old  theological  bridges  behind  him  when  he 
entered  into  partnership  with  Smith,  and  his  entire  course  after  his 
return  to  Pittsburg  only  adds  to  the  proof  that  he  was  the  origi- 
nator of  the  Mormon  Bible,  and  that  his  object  in  writing  it  was  to 
enable  him  to  be  the  head  of  a  new  church.  Surely  no  one  would 
accept  as  proof  of  the  divinity  of  the  Mormon  Bible  any  declara- 
tion by  the  man  who  told  the  story  of  angel  visits  in  Pittsburg. 

1  The  original  of  this  letter  is  in  the  collection  of  Mormon  literature  in  the  New 
York  Public  Library.  An  effort  to  learn  from  Rigdon's  descendants  something  about 
the  manuscript  paper  referred  to  by  him  has  failed. 


CHAPTER   XVI 

RIVALRIES   OVER   THE   SUCCESSION 

Rigdon  was  not  alone  in  contending  for  the  successorship  to 
Joseph  Smith  as  the  head  of  the  Mormon  church.  The  prophet's 
family  defended  vigorously  the  claim  of  his  eldest  son  to  be  his 
successor.1  Lee  says  that  the  prophet  had  bestowed  the  right  of 
succession  on  his  eldest  son  by  divination,  and  that  "  it  was  then 
[after  his  father's  death]  understood  among  the  Saints  that  young 
Joseph  was  to  succeed  his  father,  and  that  right  justly  belonged  to 
him,"  when  he  should  be  old  enough.  Lee  says  further  that  he 
heard  the  prophet's  mother  plead  with  Brigham  Young,  in  Nauvoo, 
in  1845,  with  tears,  not  to  rob  young  Joseph  of  his  birthright,  and 
that  Young  conceded  the  son's  claim,  but  warned  her  to  keep 
quiet  on  the  subject,  because  "you  are  only  laying  the  knife  to  the 
throat  of  the  child.  If  it  is  known  that  he  is  the  rightful  successor 
of  his  father,  the  enemy  of  the  Priesthood  will  seek  his  life."2 
Strang  says,  "Any  one  who  was  in  Nauvoo  in  1846  or  1847 
knows  that  the  majority  of  those  who  started  to  the  Western 
exodus,  started  in  this  hope,"  that  the  younger  Joseph  would  take 
his  father's  place.3 

At  the  last  day  of  the  Conference  held  in  the  Temple  in 
Nauvoo,  in  October,  1845,  Mother  Smith,  at  her  request,  was  per- 
mitted to  make  an  address.  She  went  over  the  history  of  her 
family,  and  asked  for  an  expression  of  opinion  whether  she  was 
"  a  mother  in  Israel."  One  universal  "  yes  "  rang  out.  She  said 
she  hoped  all  her  children  would  accompany  the  Saints  to  the 
West,  and  if  they  did  she  would  go ;  but  she  wanted  her  bones 
brought  back  to  be  buried  beside  her  husband  and  children.     Brig- 

1  The  prophet's  sons  were  Joseph,  born  November  6,  1832;  Fred  G.  W.,  June  20, 
1836;  Alexander,  June  2,  1838;  Don  Carlos,  June  13,  1840;  and  David  H.,  November 
18,  1844. 

2  "  Mormonism  Unveiled,"  pp.  155,  161. 

8  Strang's  "  Prophetic  Controversy,"  p.  4. 

322 


RIVALRIES   OVER   THE   SUCCESSION  323 

ham  Young  then  said :  "  We  have  extended  the  helping  hand  to 
Mother  Smith.  She  has  the  best  carriage  in  the  city,  and,  while 
she  lives,  shall  ride  in  it  when  and  where  she  pleases."  1  Mother 
Smith  died  in  the  summer  of  1856  in  Nauvoo,  where  she  spent  the 
last  two  years  of  her  life  with  Joseph's  first  wife,  Emma,  who  had 
married  a  Major  Bideman. 

Emma  caused  the  Twelve  a  good  deal  of  anxiety  after  her  hus- 
band's death.  Pratt  describes  a  council  held  by  her,  Marks,  and 
others  to  endeavor  to  appoint  a  trustee-in-trust  for  the  whole  church, 
the  necessity  of  which  she  vigorously  urged.  Pratt  opposed  the 
idea,  and  nothing  was  done  about  it.2  Soon  after  her  husband's 
death  the  Times  and  Seasons  noticed  a  report  that  she  was  prepar- 
ing, with  the  assistance  of  one  of  the  prophet's  Iowa  lawyers,  an 
exposure  of  his  "  revelations,"  etc.  James  Arlington  Bennett,  who 
visited  Nauvoo  after  the  prophet's  death,  acting  as  correspondent 
for  the  New  York  Sun,  gave  in  one  of  his  letters  the  text  of  a 
statement  which  he  said  Emma  had  written,  to  this  effect,  "  I 
never  for  a  moment  believed  in  what  my  husband  called  his  appa- 
ritions or  revelations,  as  I  thought  him  laboring  under  a  diseased 
mind ;  yet  they  may  all  be  true,  as  a  prophet  is  seldom  without 
credence  or  honor,  excepting  in  his  own  family  or  country."  Mrs. 
Smith,  in  a  letter  to  the  Sun,  dated  December  30,  1845,  pronounced 
this  letter  a  forgery,  while  Bennett  maintained  that  he  knew  that 
it  was  genuine.3 

The  organization  —  or,  as  they  define  it,  the  reorganization  — 
of  a  church  by  those  who  claim  that  the  mantle  of  Joseph  Smith, 
Jr.,  descended  on  his  sons,  had  its  practical  inception  at  a  confer- 
ence at  Beloit,  Wisconsin,  in  June,  1852,  at  which  resolutions  were 
adopted  disclaiming  all  fellowship  with  Young  and  other  claim- 
ants to  the  leadership  of  the  church,  declaring  that  the  suc- 
cessor of  the  prophet  "  must  of  necessity  be  the  seed  of  Joseph 
Smith,  Jr."  At  a  conference  held  in  Amboy,  Illinois,  in  April,  \ 
i860,  Joseph  Smith's  son  and  namesake  was  placed  at  the  head 
of  this  church,  a  position  which  he  still  holds.  The  Reorganized  ; 
Church  has  been  twice  pronounced  by  United  States  courts  to  be 
the  one  founded  under  the  administration  of  the  prophet.     Its 

1  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  VII,  p.  23.  2  Pratt's  "  Autobiography,"  p.  373. 

3  Emma  Smith  is  described  as  "  a  tall,  dark,  masculine  looking  woman  "  in  "  Sketches 
and  Anecdotes  of  the  Old  Settlers." 


324  THE    STORY    OF   THE   MORMONS 

teachings  may  be  called  pure  Mormonism,  free  from  the  doctrines 
engrafted  in  after  years.  It  holds  that  "the  doctrines  of  a  plu- 
rality and  community  of  wives  are  heresies,  and  are  opposed  to 
the  law  of  God."  Its  declaration  of  faith  declares  its  belief  in 
baptism  by  immersion,  the  same  kind  of  organization  (apostles, 
prophets,  pastors,  etc.)  that  existed  in  the  primitive  church,  revela- 
tions by  God  to  man  from  time  to  time  "  until  the  end  of  time,"  and 
in  "  the  powers  and  gifts  of  the  everlasting  gospel,  viz.,  the  gift 
of  faith,  discerning  of  spirits,  prophesy,  revelation,  healing,  visions, 
tongues,  and  the  interpretation  of  tongues."  No  one  ever  heard 
of  this  church  having  any  trouble  with  its  Gentile  neighbors. 

The  Reorganized  Church  moved  its  headquarters  to  Lamoni, 
Iowa,  in  1 88 1.  It  has  a  present  membership  of  45,381,  according 
to  the  report  of  the  General  Church  Recorder  to  the  conference  of 
April,  1 90 1.  Of  these  members,  6964  were  foreign,  —  2867  in 
Canada,  1080  in  England,  and  1955  in  the  Society  Islands.  The 
largest  membership  in  this  country  is  7952  in  Iowa,  6280  in  Mis- 
souri, and  3564  in  Michigan.     Utah  reported  685  members. 

The  most  determined  claimant  to  the  successorship  of  Smith 
was  James  J.  Strang.  Born  at  Scipio,  New  York,  in  181 3,  Strang 
was  admitted  to  the  bar  when  a  young  man,  and  moved  to  Wis- 
consin. Some  of  the  Mormons  who  went  into  the  north  woods  to 
get  lumber  for  the  Nauvoo  Temple  planted  a  Stake  near  La  Crosse, 
under  Lyman  Wight,  in  1842.  Trouble  ensued  very  soon  with 
their  non-Mormon  neighbors,  and  after  a  rather  brief  career  the 
supporters  of  this  Stake  moved  away  quietly  one  night.  Strang 
heard  of  the  Mormon  doctrines  from  these  settlers,  accepted  their 
truth,  and  visiting  Nauvoo,  was  baptized  in  February,  1844,  made 
an  elder,  and  authorized  to  plant  another  Stake  in  Wisconsin.  He 
first  attempted  to  found  a  city  called  Voree,  where  a  temple  cover- 
ing more  than  two  acres  of  ground,  with  twelve  towers,  was 
begun. 

When  Smith  was  killed,  Strang  at  once  came  forward  with  a 
declaration  that  the  prophet's  revelations  indicated  that,  at  the 
close  of  his  own  prophetic  office,  another  would  be  called  to  the 
place  by  revelation,  and  ordained  at  the  hands  of  angels ;  that  not 
only  had  he  (Strang)  been  so  ordained,  but  that  Smith  had  writ- 
ten to  him  in  June,  1844,  predicting  the  end  of  his  own  work,  and 
telling  Strang  that  he  was  to  gather  the  people  in  a  Zion  in  Wis- 


RIVALRIES   OVER   THE    SUCCESSION  325 

consin.  Strang  began  at  once  giving  out  revelations,  describing 
visions,  and  announcing  that  an  angel  had  shown  him  "  plates  of 
the  sealed  record,"  and  given  him  the  Urim  and  Thummim  to 
translate  them. 

Although  Strang's  whole  scheme  was  a  very  clumsy  imitation 
of  Smith's,  he  drew  a  considerable  number  of  followers  to  his  Wis- 
consin branch,  where  he  published  a  newspaper  called  the  Voree 
Herald,  and  issued  pamphlets  in  defence  of  his  position,  and  a 
"  Book  of  the   Law,"  explaining  his  doctrinal  teachings,   which    . 
included  polygamy.      He  had  five  wives.      His  Herald  printed  a 
statement,  signed  by  the  prophet's  mother  and  his  brother  William,  I 
his  three  married  sisters,  and  the  husband  of  one  of  them,  certify-  I 
ing  that  "  the  Smith  family  do  believe  in  the  appointment  of  J.  J. 
Strang."     Among  other  Mormons  of  note  who  gave  in  their  alle- 
giance to  Strang  were  John  E.  Page,  one  of  the  Twelve  (whom 
Phelps  had  called  "the  sun-diaT^),' General  John  C.  Bennett,  and 
Martin  Harris. 

Strang  gave  the  Mormon  leaders  considerable  anxiety,  espe- 
cially when  he  sent  missionaries  to  England  to  work  up  his  cause. 
The  Millennial  Star  of  November  15,  1846,  devoted  a  good  deal  of 
space  to  the  subject.     The  article  began  :  — 

"Sketches  of  Notorious  Characters:  James  J.  Strang,  successor  of 
Sidney  Rigdon,  Judius  Iscariot,  Cain  &  Co.,  Envoy  Extraordinary  and  a  Minister 
Plenipotentiary  to  His  Most  Gracious  Majesty  Lucifer  I.,  assisted  by  his  allied 
cotemporary  advisers,  John  C.  Bennett,  William  Smith,  G.  T.  Adams,  and  John 
E.  Page,  Secretary  of  Legation." 

Strang  announced  a  revelation  which  declared  that  he  was  to 
be  "  King  in  Zion,"  and  his  coronation  took  place  on  July  8,  1850, 
when  he  was  crowned  with  a  metal  crown  having  a  cluster  of  stars 
on  its  front.     Burnt  offerings  were  included  in  the  programme. 

This  ceremony  took  place  on  Beaver  Island,  in  Lake  Superior, 
where  in  1847  Strang  had  gathered  his  people  and  assumed  both 
temporal  and  spiritual  authority.  Both  of  these  claims  got  him 
into  trouble.  His  non-Mormon  neighbors,  fishermen  and  lumber- 
men, accused  the  Mormons  of  wholesale  thefts  ;  his  assumption  of 
regal  authority  brought  him  before  the  United  States  court, 
(where  he  was  not  held);  and  his  advocacy  of  the  practice  of 
polygamy  by  his  followers  aroused  insubordination,  and  on  June 


326  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

15,  1856,  he  was  shot  by  two  members  of  his  flock  whom  he  had 
offended,  and  who  were  at  once  regarded  as  heroes  by  the  people 
of  the  mainland.  A  mob  secured  a  vessel,  visited  Beaver  Island, 
where  Strang  had  maintained  a  sort  of  fort,  and  compelled  the 
Mormon  inhabitants  to  embark  immediately,  with  what  little  prop- 
erty they  could  gather  up.  They  were  landed  at  different  places, 
most  of  them  in  Milwaukee.     Thus  ended  Strang's  Kingdom.1 

Another  leader  who  "  set  up  for  himself  "  after  Smith's  death 
was  Lyman  Wight,  who  had  been  one  of  the  Twelve  in  Missouri, 
and  was  arrested  with  Smith  there.  Wight  did  not  lay  claim  to 
the  position  of  President  of  the  church,  but  he  resented  what  he 
called  Brigham  Young's  usurpation.  In  1845  he  led  a  small  com- 
pany of  his  followers  to  Texas,  where  they  first  settled  on  the 
Colorado  River,  near  Austin.  They  made  successive  moves  from 
that  place  into  Gillespie,  Burnett,  and  Bandera  counties.  He  died 
near  San  Antonio  in  March,  1858.  The  fact  that  Wight  entered 
into  the  practice  of  polygamy  almost  as  soon  as  he  reached  Texas, 
and  still  escaped  any  conflict  with  his  non-Mormon  neighbors, 
affords  proof  of  his  good  character  in  other  respects.  The  Gal- 
veston News,  in  its  notice  of  his  death,  said,  "  Mr.  Wight  first  came 
to  Texas  in  November,  1845,  and  has  been  with  his  colony  on 
our  extreme  frontier  ever  since,  moving  still  farther  west  as  set- 
tlements formed  around  him,  thus  always  being  the  pioneer  of 
advancing  civilization,  affording  protection  against  the  Indians." 

After  Wight's  death  his  people  scattered.  A  majority  of  them 
became  identified  with  the  Reorganized  Church,  a  few  gave  in  their 
allegiance  to  the  organization  in  Utah,  and  others  abandoned 
Mormonism  entirely. 

1  "A  Moses  of  the  Mormons,"  by  Henry  E.  Legler,  Parkman  Club  Publications, 
Nos.  15-16,  Milwaukee,  Wisconsin,  May  II,  1897;  "An  American  Kingdom  of  Mor- 
mons," Magazine  of  Western  History,  Cleveland,  Ohio,  April,  1 886. 


CHAPTER   XVII 

BRIGHAM   YOUNG  ■ 

Brigham  Young,  the  man  who  had  succeeded  in  expelling 
Rigdon  and  establishing  his  own  position  as  head  of  the  church, 
was  born  in  Whitingham,  Windham  County,  Vermont,  on  June  I, 
1 80 1.  The  precise  locality  of  his  birth  in  that  town  is  in  dispute. 
His  father,  a  native  of  Massachusetts,  is  said  to  have  served  under 
Washington  during  the  Revolutionary  War.  The  family  consisted 
of  eleven  children,  five  sons  and  six  daughters,  of  whom  Brigham 
was  the  ninth.  The  Youngs  moved  to  Whitingham  in  January, 
1 80 1.  In  his  address  at  the  centennial  celebration  of  that  town  in 
1880,  Clark  Jillson  said,  "Henry  Goodnow,  Esq.,  of  this  town 
says  that  Brigham  Young's  father  came  here  the  poorest  man  that 
ever  had  been  in  town ;  that  he  never  owned  a  cow,  horse,  or  any 
land,  but  was  a  basket  maker."  Mormon  accounts  represent  the 
elder  Young  as  having  been  a  farmer. 

His  circumstances  permitted  him  to  give  his  children  very  little 
education,  and,  when  sixteen  years  old,  Brigham  seems  to  have  > 
started  out  to  make  his  own  living,  working  as  a  carpenter,  painter, 
and  glazier,  as  jobs  were  offered.  He  was  living  in  Aurelius, 
Cayuga  County,  New  York,  in  1824,  working  at  his  trade,  and 
there,  in  October  of  that  year,  he  married  his  first  wife,  Miriam 
Works.  In  1829  they  moved  to  Mendon,  Monroe  County,  New 
York. 

Joseph  Smith's  brother,  in  the  following  year,  left  a  copy  of 
the  Mormon  Bible  at  the  house  of  Brigham's  brother  Phineas  in 
Mendon,  and  there  Brigham  first  saw  it.  Occasional  preaching 
by  Mormon  elders  made  the  new  faith  a  subject  of  conversation 
in  the  neighborhood,  and  Phineas  was  an  early  convert.  Brigham 
stated  in  a  sermon  in  Salt  Lake  City,  on  August  8,  1852,  that  he 
examined  the  new  Bible  for  two  years  before  deciding  to  receive 
it.     He  was  baptized  into  the  Mormon  church  on  April  14,  1832. 

327 


328  THE   STORY   OF  THE   MORMONS 

His  wife,  who  also  embraced  the  faith,  died  in  September  of  that 
year,  leaving  him  two  daughters. 

Young  married  his  second  wife,  Mary  A.  Angel,  in  Kirtland 
on  March  31,  1834.  His  application  for  a  marriage  license  is  still 
on  file  among  the  records  of  the  Probate  Court  at  Chardon,  now 
the  shire  town  of  Geauga  County,  Ohio,  and  his  signature  is  a  proof 
of  his  illiterateness,  showing  that  he  did  not  know  how  to  spell  his 
own  baptismal  name,  spelling  it  "  Bricham." 

Young  began  preaching  and  baptizing  in  the  neighborhood, 
having  at  once  been  made  an  elder,  and  in  the  autumn  of  1832, 
after  Smith's  second  return  from  Missouri,  he  visited  Kirtland  and 
first  saw  the  prophet.  Mormon  accounts  of  this  visit  say  that 
Young  "  spoke  in  tongues,"  and  that  Smith  pronounced  his  lan- 
guage "  the  pure  Adamic,"  and  then  predicted  that  he  would  in  time 
preside  over  the  church.  It  is  not  at  all  improbable  that  Joseph 
did  not  hesitate  to  interpret  Brigham's  "  tongues,"  but  at  that  time 
he  was  thinking  of  everything  else  but  a  successor  to  himself. 

Young,  with  his  brother  Joseph,  went  from  Kirtland  on  foot  to 
Canada,  where  he  preached  and  baptized,  and  whence  he  brought 
back  a  company  of  converts.  He  worked  at  his  trade  in  Kirtland 
(preaching  as  called  upon)  from  that  time  until  1834,  when  he 
accompanied  the  "  Army  of  Zion  "  to  Missouri,  being  one  of  the 
captains  of  tens.  Returning  with  the  prophet,  he  was  employed 
on  the  Temple  and  other  church  buildings  for  the  next  three 
years  (superintending  the  painting  of  the  Temple),  when  he  was 
not  engaged  in  other  church  work.  Having  been  made  one  of 
the  original  Quorum  of  Twelve  in  1835,  ne  devoted  a  good  deal 
of  time  in  the  warmer  months  holding  conferences  in  New  York 
State  and  New  England. 

When  open  opposition  to  Smith  manifested  itself  in  Kirtland, 
Young  was  one  of  his  firmest  defenders.  He  attended  a  meeting 
in  an  upper  room  of  the  Temple,  the  object  of  which  was  to  depose 
Smith  and  place  David  Whitmer  in  the  Presidency,  leading  in  the 
debate,  and  declaring  that  he  "  knew  that  Joseph  was  a  prophet." 
According  to  his  own  statement,  he  learned  of  a  plot  to  kill  Smith 
as  he  was  returning  from  Michigan  in  a  stage-coach,  and  met  the 
coach  with  a  horse  and  buggy,  and  drove  the  prophet  to  Kirtland 
unharmed.  When  Smith  found  it  necessary  to  flee  from  Ohio, 
Young  followed  him  to  Missouri  with  his  family,  arriving  at  Far 


BRIGHAM   YOUNG  329 

West  on  March  14,  1838.     He  sailed  to  Liverpool  on  a  mission  in 
1840,  remaining  there  a  little  more  than  a  year. 

In  all  the  discords  of  the  church  that  occurred  during  Smith's 
life,  Young  never  incurred  the  prophet's  displeasure,  and  there  is 
no  evidence  that  he  ever  attempted  to  obtain  any  more  power  or 
honor  for  himself  than  was  voluntarily  accorded  to  him.  He  gave 
practical  assistance  to  the  refugees  from  Missouri  as  they  arrived 
at  Quincy,  but  there  is  no  record  of  his  prominence  in  the  discus- 
sions there  over  the  future  plans  for  the  church.  The  prophet's 
liking  for  him  is  shown  in  a  revelation  dated  at  Nauvoo,  July  9, 
1 841  (Sec.  126),  which  said:  — 

"  Dear  and  beloved  brother  Brigham  Young,  verily  thus  saith  the  Lord  unto 
you,  my  servant  Brigham,  it  is  no  more  required  at  your  hand  to  leave  your 
family  as  in  times  past,  for  your  offering  is  acceptable  to  me ;  I  have  seen  your 
labor  and  toil  in  journeyings  for  my  name.  I  therefore  command  you  to 
send  my  word  abroad,  and  take  special  care  of  your  family  from  this  time,  hence- 
forth, and  forever.     Amen." 

The  apostasy  of  Marsh  and  the  death  of  Patton  had  left  Young 
the  President  of  the  Twelve,  and  that  was  the  position  in  which  he 
found  himself  at  the  time  of  Smith's  death. 

One  of  the  first  subjects  which  Young  had  to  decide  concerned 
"revelations."  Did  they  cease  with  Smith's  death,  or,  if  not,  who 
would  receive  and  publish  them  ?  Young  made  a  statement  on 
this  subject  at  the  church  conference  held  at  Nauvoo  on  October  6 
of  that  year,  which  indicated  his  own  uncertainty  on  the  subject, 
and  which  concluded  as  follows,  "  Every  member  has  the  right  of 
receiving  revelations  for  themselves,  both  male  and  female."  As 
if  conscious  that  all  this  was  not  very  clear,  he  closed  by  making  a 
declaration  which  was  very  characteristic  of  his  future  policy  :  "  If 
you  don't  know  whose  right  it  is  to  give  revelations,  I  will  tell  you. 
It  is  I."  1  We  shall  see  that  the  discontinuance  of  written  "  revela- 
tions "  was  a  cause  of  complaint  during  all  of  Young's  subsequent 
career  in  Utah,  but  he  never  yielded  to  the  demand  for  them. 

At  the  conference  in  Nauvoo  Young  selected  eighty-five  men 
from  the  Quorum  of  high  priests  to  preside  over  branches  of  the 
church  in  all  the  congressional  districts  of  the  United  States  ;  and 
he  took  pains  to  explain  to  them  that  they  were  not  to  stay  six 
months  and  then  return,  but  "  to  go  and  settle  down  where  they 

1  Times  and  Seasons,  Vol.  V,  pp.  682-683. 


330 


THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 


can  take  their  families  and  tarry  until  the  Temple  is  built,  and  then 
come  and  get  their  endowments,  and  return  to  their  families  and 
build  up  a  Stake  as  large  as  this."  Young's  policy  evidently  was, 
while  not  imitating  Rigdon's  plan  to  move  the  church  bodily  to  the 
East,  to  build  up  big  branches  all  over  the  country,  with  a  view  to 
such  control  of  affairs,  temporal  and  spiritual,  as  could  be  attained. 
"  If  the  people  will  let  us  alone,"  he  said  to  this  same  conference, 
"we  will  convert  the  world." 

Many  members  did  not  look  on  the  Twelve  as  that  head  of  the 
church  which  Smith's  revelations  had  decreed.  It  was  argued  by 
those  who  upheld  Rigdon  and  Strang,  and  by  some  who  remained 
with  the  Twelve,  that  the  "  revelations  "  still  required  a  First  Presi- 
dency. The  Twelve  allowed  this  question  to  remain  unsettled  un- 
til the  brethren  were  gathered  at  Winter  Quarters,  Iowa,  after  their 
expulsion  from  Nauvoo,  and  Young  had  returned  from  his  first 
trip  to  Salt  Lake  valley.  The  matter  was  taken  up  at  a  council 
at  Orson  Hyde's  house  on  December  5,  1847,  and  it;  was  decided, 
but  not  without  some  opposing  views,  to  reorganize  the  church 
according  to  the  original  plan,  with  a  First  Presidency  and  Patri- 
arch. In  accordance  with  this  plan,  a  conference  was  held  in  the 
log  tabernacle  at  Winter  Quarters  on  December  24,  and  Young 
was  elected  President  and  John  Smith  Patriarch.  Young  selected 
Heber  C.  Kimball  and  Willard  Richards  to  be  his  counsellors,  and 
the  action  of  this  conference  was  confirmed  in  Salt  Lake  City  the 
following  October.  Young  wrote  immediately  after  his  election, 
"  This  is  one  of  the  happiest  days  of  my  life." 

The  vacancies  in  the  Twelve  caused  by  these  promotions,  and 
by  Wight's  apostasy,  were  not  filled  until  February  12,  1849,  in 
Salt  Lake  City,  when  Lorenzo  Snow,  Erastus  Snow,  C.  C.  Rich, 
and  F.  D.  Richards  were  chosen. 


CHAPTER  XVIII 

RENEWED    TROUBLE    FOR    THE     MORMONS  — "THE 
BURNINGS" 

The  death  of  the  prophet  did  not  bring  peace  with  their  out- 
side neighbors  to  the  Mormon  church.  Indeed,  the  causes  of 
enmity  were  too  varied  and  radical  to  be  removed  by  any  changes 
in  the  leadership,  so  long  as  the  brethren  remained  where  they 
were. 

In  the  winter  of  1 844-1 845  charges  of  stealing  made  against  the  ; 
Mormons  by  their  neighbors  became  more  frequent.  Governor 
Ford,  in  his  message  to  the  legislature,  pronounced  such  reports 
exaggerated,  but  it  probably  does  the  governor  no  injustice  to  say 
that  he  now  had  his  eye  on  the  Mormon  vote.  The  non-Mormons 
in  Hancock  and  the  surrounding  counties  held  meetings  and 
appointed  committees  to  obtain  accurate  information  about  the 
thefts,  and  the  old  complaints  of  the  uselessness  of  tracing  stolen 
goods  to  Nauvoo  were  revived.  The  Mormons  vigorously  denied 
these  charges  through  formal  action  taken  by  the  Nauvoo  City 
Council  and  a  citizens'  meeting,  alleging  that  in  many  cases  "  out- 
landish men  "  had  visited  the  city  at  night  to  scatter  counterfeit 
money  and  deposit  stolen  goods,  the  responsibility  for  which  was 
laid  on  Mormon  shoulders. 

It  is  not  at  all  improbable  that  many  a  theft  in  western  Illinois 
in  those  days  that  was  charged  to  Mormons  had  other  authors  ; 
but  testimony  regarding  the  dishonesty  of  many  members  of  the 
church,  such  as  we  have  seen  presented  in  Smith's  day,  was  still 
available.  Thus,  Young,  in  one  of  his  addresses  to  the  conference 
assembled  at  Nauvoo  about  two  months  after  Smith's  death,  made 
this  statement :  "  Elders  who  go  to  borrowing  horses  or  money, 
and  running  away  with  it,  will  be  cut  off  from  the  church  without 
any  ceremony.      They  will  not  have  as  much  lenity  as  heretofore."  x 

1  Times  and  Seasons,  Vol.  V,  p.  696. 
331 


332  THE   STORY   OF  THE  MORMONS 

A  lady  who  published  a  sketch  of  her  travels  in  1845  through 
Illinois  and  Iowa  wrote  :  — 

"  We  now  entered  a  part  of  the  country  laid  waste  by  the  desperadoes  among 
the  Mormons.  Whole  farms  were  deserted,  fields  were  still  covered  with  wheat 
unreaped,  and  cornfields  stood  ungathered,  the  inhabitants  having  fled  to  a  dis- 
tant part  of  the  country.  .  .  .  Friends  gave  us  a  good  deal  of  information  about 
the  doings  of  these  Saints  at  Nauvoo  —  said  that  often,  when  their  orchards  were 
full  of  fruit,  some  sixteen  of  these  monsters  would  come  with  bowie  knives  and 
drive  the  owners  into  their  houses  while  they  stripped  their  trees  of  the  fruit.  If 
these  rogues  wanted  cattle  they  would  drive  off  the  cattle  of  the  Gentiles." x 

A  trial  concerning  the  title  to  some  land  in  Adams  County  in 
that  year  brought  out  the  fact  that  there  existed  in  the  Mormon 
church  what  was  called  a  "Oneness."  Five  persons  would  asso- 
ciate and  select  one  of  their  members  as  a  guardian ;  then,  if  any 
of  the  property  they  jointly  owned  was  levied  on,  they  would 
show  that  one  or  more  of  the  other  five  was  the  real  owner. 

While  the  Mormons  continued  to  send  abroad  glowing  pictures 
of  the  prosperity  of  Nauvoo,  less  prejudiced  accounts  gave  a  very 
different  view.  The  latter  pointed  out  that  the  immigrants,  who 
supplied  the  only  source  of  prosperity,  had  expended  most  of  their 
capital  on  houses  and  lots,  that  building  operations  had  declined, 
because  houses  could  be  bought  cheaper  than  they  could  be  built, 
and  that  mechanics  had  been  forced  to  seek  employment  in  St. 
Louis.  Published  reports  that  large  numbers  of  the  poor  in  the 
city  were  dependent  on  charity  received  confirmation  in  a  letter 
published  in  the  Millennial  Star  of  October  1,  1845,  which  said 
that  on  a  fast-day  proclaimed  by  Young,  when  the  poor  were  to  be 
remembered,  "  people  were  seen  trotting  in  all  directions  to  the 
Bishops  of  the  different  wards  "  with  their  contributions. 

We  have  seen  that  the  gathering  of  the  Saints  at  Nauvoo  was 
an  idea  of  Joseph  Smith,  and  was  undertaken  against  the  judg- 
ment of  some  of  the  wiser  members  of  the  church.  The  plan,  so 
far  as  its  business  features  were  concerned,  was  on  a  par  with 
the  other  business  enterprises  that  the  prophet  had  fathered. 
There  was  nothing  to  sustain  a  population  of  15,000  persons,  arti- 
ficially collected,  in  this  frontier  settlement,  and  that  disaster  must 
have  resulted  from  the  experiment,  even  without  the  hostile  oppo- 
sition of  their  neighbors,  is  evident  from  the  fact  that  Nauvoo  to- 

1  "  Book  for  the  Married  and  Single,"  by  Ann  Archbold. 


RENEWED   TROUBLE   FOR   THE   MORMONS  333 

day,  when  fifty  years  have  settled  up  the  surrounding  district  and 
brought  it  in  better  communication  with  the  world,  is  a  village  of  - 
only  1 32 1  inhabitants  (census  of  1900). 

Politics  were  not  eliminated  from  the  causes  of  trouble  by 
Smith's  death.  Not  only  was  1844  a  presidential  year,  but  the 
citizens  of  Hancock  County  were  to  vote  for  a  member  of  Con- 
gress, two  members  of  the  legislature,  and  a  sheriff.  Governor 
Ford  urgently  advised  the  Mormons  not  to  vote  at  all,  as  a  meas- 
ure of  peace ;  but  political  feeling  ran  very  high,  and  the  Demo- 
crats got  the  Mormon  vote  for  President,  and  with  the  same 
assistance  elected  as  sheriff  General  Deming,  the  officer  left  by 
Governor  Ford  in  command  of  the  militia  at  Carthage  when  the 
Smiths  were  killed,  as  well  as  two  members  of  the  legislature  who 
had  voted  against  the  repeal  of  the  Nauvoo  city  charter. 

The  tone  of  the  Mormons  toward  their  non-Mormon  neighbors 
seemed  to  become  more  defiant  at  this  time  than  ever.  The  repeal  \ 
of  the  Nauvoo  charter,  in  January,  1845,  unloosened  their  tongues. 
Their  newspaper,  the  Neighbor,  declared  that  the  legislature  "  had 
no  more  right  to  repeal  the  charter  than  the  United  States  would 
have  to  abrogate  and  make  void  the  constitution  of  the  state,  or  than 
Great  Britain  would  have  to  abolish  the  constitution  of  the  United 
States  —  and  the  man  that  says  differently  is  a  coward,  a  traitor  to 
his  own  rights,  and  a  tyrant ;  no  odds  what  Blackstone,  Kent  or 
Story  may  have  written  to  make  themselves  and  their  names  popu- 
lar, to  the  contrary." 

The  Neighbor,  in  the  same  article,  thus  defined  its  view  of  the 
situation,  after  the  repeal :  — 

"  Nor  is  it  less  legal  for  an  insulted  individual  or  community  to  resist  oppres- 
sion. For  this  reason,  until  the  blood  of  Joseph  and  Hyrum  Smith  has  been 
atoned  for  by  hanging,  shooting  or  slaying  in  some  manner  every  person  engaged 
in  that  cowardly,  mean  assassination,  no  Latter-Day  Saint  should  give  himself  up 
to  the  law ;  for  the  presumption  is  that  they  will  murder  him  in  the  same  man- 
ner. .  .  .  Neither  should  civil  process  come  into  Nauvoo  till  the  United  States^ 
by  a  vigorous  course,  causes  the  State  of  Missouri  and  the  State  of  Illinois  to  re- 
dress every  man  that  has  suffered  the  loss  of  lands,  goods  or  anything  else  by 
expulsion.  .  .  .  If  any  man  is  bound  to  maintain  the  law,  it  is  for  the  benefit  he 
may  derive  from  it.  .  .  .  Well,  our  charter  is  repealed ;  the  murderers  of  the 
Smiths  are  running  at  large,  and  if  the  Mormons  should  wish  to  imitate  their  fore- 
fathers and  fulfil  the  Scriptures  by  making  it  '  hard  to  kick  against  the  pricks'  by 
wearing  cast  steel  pikes  about  four  or  five  inches  long  in  their  boots  and  shoes 
to  kick  with,  what's  the  harm  ?  " 


334  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

Such  utterances,  which  found  imitation  in  the  addresses  of  the 
leaders,  and  were  echoed  in  the  columns  of  Pratt's  Prophet  in  New 
York,  made  it  easy  for  their  hostile  neighbors  to  believe  that  the 
Mormons  considered  themselves  beyond  the  reach  of  any  law  but 
their  own.  Some  daring  murders  committed  across  the  river  in 
Iowa  in  the  spring  of  1845  afforded  confirmation  to  the  non-Mor-j 
mons  of  their  belief  in  church-instigated  crimes  of  this  character,; 
and  in  the  existence  and  activity  of  the  Danite  organization.  The 
Mormon  authorities  had  denied  that  there  were  organized  Danites 
at  Nauvoo,  but  the  weight  of  testimony  is  against  the  denial. 
Gregg,  a  resident  of  the  locality  when  the  Mormons  dwelt  there, 
gives  a  fair  idea  of  the  accepted  view  of  the  Danites  at  that 
time :  — 

"  They  were  bound  together  with  oaths  of  the  most  solemn  character,  and 
the  punishment  of  traitors  to  the  order  was  death.  John  A.  Murrell's  Band  of 
Pirates,  who  flourished  at  one  time  near  Jackson,  Tennessee,  and  up  and  down  the 
Mississippi  River  above  New  Orleans,  was  never  so  terrible  as  the  Danite  Band, 
for  the  latter  was  a  powerful  organization,  and  was  above  the  law.  The  band 
made  threats,  and  they  were  not  idle  threats.  They  went  about  on  horseback, 
under  cover  of  darkness,  disguised  in  long  white  robes  with  red  girdles.  Their 
faces  were  covered  with  masks  to  conceal  their  identity.1' l 

Phineas  Wilcox,  a  young  man  of  good  reputation,  went  to 
Nauvoo  on  September  16,  1845,  to  get  some  wheat  ground,  and 
while  there  disappeared  completely.  The  inquiry  made  concern- 
ing him  led  his  friends  to  believe  that  he  was  suspected  of  being  a 
Gentile  spy,  and  was  quietly  put  out  of  the  way.2 

William  Smith,  the  prophet's  brother,  contributed  to  the  testi- 
mony against  the  Mormon  leaders.  Returning  from  the  East, 
where  he  had  been  living  for  three  years  when  Joseph  was  killed, 
he  was  warmly  welcomed  by  the  Mormon  press,  and  elevated  to 
the  position  of  Patriarch,  and,  as  such,  issued  a  sort  of  advertise- 
ment of  his  patriarchal  wares  in  the  Times  and  Seasons2,  and 
Neighbor,  inviting  those  in  want  of  blessings  to  call  at  his  resi- 
dence. William  was  not  a  man  of  tact,  and  it  required  but  a  little 
time  for  him  to  arouse  the  jealousy  of  the  leaders,  the  result  of 
which  was  a  notice  in  the   Times  and  Seasons  of   November  1, 

1  "  History  of  Hancock  County."  See  also  "  Sketches  and  Anecdotes  of  the  Old 
Settlers,"  p.  34. 

2  See  Lee's  "Mormonism  Unveiled,"  pp.  158-159,  for  accounts  of  methods  of  dis- 
posing of  objectionable  persons  at  Nauvoo.  8  Vol.  VI,  p.  904. 


RENEWED    TROUBLE   FOR   THE   MORMONS  335 

1845,  that  he  had  been  "cut  off  and  left  in  the  hands  of  God." 
But  William  was  not  a  man  to  remain  quiet  even  in  such  a  retreat, 
and  he  soon  afterward  issued  to  the  Saints  throughout  the  world 
"a  proclamation  and  faithful  warning,"  which  filled  eight  and  a 
half  columns  of  the  Warsaw  Signal  of  October  29,  1845,  in  which, 
"  in  all  meekness  of  spirit,  and  without  anger  or  malice  "  (William 
possessed  most  of  the  family  traits),  he  accused  Young  of  instigat- 
ing murders,  and  spoke  of  him  in  this  way :  — 

"It  is  my  firm  and  sincere  conviction  that,  since  the  murder  of  my  two 
brothers,  usurpation,  and  anarchy,  and  spiritual  wickedness  in  high  places  have 
crept  into  the  church,  with  the  cognizance  and  acquiescence  of  those  whose 
solemn  duty  it  was  to  guardedly  watch  against  such  a  state  of  things.  Under 
the  reign  of  one  whom  I  may  call  a  Pontius  Pilate,  under  the  reign,  I  say,  of  this 
Brigham  Young,  no  greater  tyrant  ever  existed  since  the  days  of  Nero.  He  has 
no  other  justification  than  ignorance  to  cover  the  most  cruel  acts  —  acts  disgrace- 
ful to  any  one  bearing  the  stamp  of  humanity ;  and  this  being  has  associated 
around  him  men,  bound  by  oaths  and  covenants,  who  are  reckless  enough  to 
commit  almost  any  crime,  or  fulfil  any  command  that  their  self-crowned  head 
might  give  them.1' 

William  was,  of  course,  welcomed  as  a  witness  by  the  non- 
Mormons.  He  soon  after  went  to  St.  Louis,  and  while  there 
received  a  letter  from  Orson  Hyde,  which  called  his  proclamation 
"a  cruel  thrust,"  but  urged  him  to  return,  pledging  that  they 
would  not  harm  him.  William  did  not  accept  the  invitation,  but 
settled  in  Illinois,  became  a  respected  citizen,  and  in  later  years 
was  elected  to  the  legislature.  When  invited  to  join  the  Reor- 
ganized Church  by  his  nephew  Joseph,  he  declined,  saying,  "  I  am 
not  in  sympathy,  very  strongly,  with  any  of  the  present  organized 
bands  of  Mormons,  your  own  not  excepted." 

By  the  spring  of  1845  the  Mormons  were  deserted  even  by 
their  Democratic  allies,  some  three  hundred  of  whom  in  Hancock 
County  issued  an  address  denying  that  the  opposition  to  them  was 
principally  Whig,  and  declaring  that  it  had  arisen  from  compul- 
sion and  in  self-defence.  Governor  Ford,  anxious  to  be  rid  of  his, 
troublesome  constituents,  sent  a  confidential  letter  to  Brigham 
Young,  dated  April  8,  1845,  saying,  ''If  you  can  get  off  by  your- 
selves you  may  enjoy  peace,"  and  suggesting  California  as  open- 
ing "  a  field  for  the  prettiest  enterprise  that  has  been  undertaken 
in  modern  times." 

An  era  of  the  most  disgraceful  outrages  that  marked  any  of 


336  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

the  conflicts  between  the  Mormons  and  their  opponents  east  of  the 
Rocky  Mountains  began  in  Hancock  County  on  the  night  of  Sep- 
tember 9,  when  a  schoolhouse  in  Green  Plain,  south  of  Warsaw, 
in  which  the  anti-Mormons  were  holding  a  meeting,  was  fired 
upon.  The  Mormons  always  claimed  that  this  was  a  sham  attack, 
made  by  the  anti-Mormons  to  give  an  excuse  for  open  hostilities, 
and  probabilities  favor  this  view.  Straightway  ensued  what  were 
known  as  the  "  burnings."  A  band  of  men,  numbering  from  one 
hundred  to  two  hundred,  and  coming  mostly  from  Warsaw,  began 
burning  the  houses,  outbuildings,  and  grain  stacks  of  Mormons  all 
over  the  southwest  part  of  the  county.  The  owners  were  given 
time  to  remove  their  effects,  and  were  ordered  to  make  haste  to 
Nauvoo,  and  in  this  way  the  country  region  was  rapidly  rid  of 
Mormon  settlers.1 

The  sheriff  of  the  county  at  that  time  was  J.  B.  Backenstos, 
who,  Ford  says,  went  to  Hancock  County  from  Sangamon,  a 
fraudulent  debtor,  and  whose  brother  married  a  niece  of  the 
Prophet  Joseph.2  He  had  been  elected  to  the  legislature  the  year 
before,  and  had  there  so  openly  espoused  the  Mormon  cause  — 
opposing  the  repeal  of  the  Nauvoo  charter  —  that  his  constituents 
proposed  to  drive  him  from  the  county  when  he  returned  home. 
Backenstos  at  once  took  up  the  cause  of  the  Mormons,  issued 
proclamation  after  proclamation,3  all  breathing  the  utmost  hostility 
to  the  Mormon  assailants,  and  calling  on  the  citizens  to  aid  him  as 
a  posse  in  maintaining  order. 

A  sheriff  of  different  character  might  have  secured  the  help 
that  was  certainly  his  due  on  such  an  occasion,  but  no  non-Mormon 
would  respond  to  a  call  by  Backenstos.  An  occurrence  incidental 
to  these  disturbances  now  added  to  the  public  feeling.  On  Sep- 
tember 1 6,  Lieutenant  Worrell,  who  had  been  in  command  of  the 
guard  at  the  jail  when  the  Smith  brothers  were  killed,  was  shot  dead 
while  riding  with  two  companions  from  Carthage  to  Warsaw.  His 
death  was  charged  to  Backenstos  and  to  O.  P.  Rockwell,4  the  man 
accused  of  the  attempted  assassination  of  Governor  Boggs,  and 

1  Gregg's  "  History  of  Hancock  County,"  p.  374. 

2  Ford's  "  History  of  Illinois,"  pp.  407-408. 

3  For  the  text  of  five  of  these  proclamations,  see  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  VI. 

4  "  Who  was  the  actual  guilty  party  may  never  be  known.  We  have  lately  been 
informed  from  Salt  Lake  that  Rockwell  did  the  deed,  under  order  of  the  sheriff,  which 
is  probably  the  case."  —  Gregg,  "  History  of  Hancock  County,"  p.  341. 


RENEWED   TROUBLE   FOR  THE   MORMONS  337 

both  were  afterward  put  on  trial  for  it,  but  were  acquitted. 
The  sheriff  now  turned  to  the  Nauvoo  Legion  for  recruits,  and 
in  his  third  proclamation  he  announced  that  he  then  had  a  posse 
of  upward  of  two  thousand  "  well-armed  men  "  and  two  thousand 
more  ready  to  respond  to  his  call.  He  marched  in  different 
directions  with  this  force,  visiting  Carthage,  where  he  placed  a 
number  of  citizens  under  arrest  and  issued  his  Proclamation  No.  4, 
in  which  he  characterized  the  Carthage  Grays  as  "a  band  of  the 
most  infamous  and  villanous  scoundrels  that  ever  infested  any 
community." 

"  During  the  ascendency  of  the  sheriff  and  the  absence  of  the 
an ti- Mormons  from  their  homes,"  said  Governor  Ford,1  "  the 
people  who  had  been  burnt  out  of  their  houses  assembled  at 
Nauvoo,  from  whence,  with  many  others,  they  sallied  forth  and 
ravaged  the  country,  stealing  and  plundering  whatever  was  con- 
venient to  carry  or  drive  away."  Thus  it  seems  that  the  gov- 
ernor had  changed  his  opinion  about  the  honesty  of  the  Mormons. 
To  remedy  the  chaotic  condition  of  affairs  in  the  county,  Governor 
Ford  went  to  Jacksonville,  Morgan  County,  where,  in  a  conference, 
it  was  decided  that  Judge  Stephen  A.  Douglas,  General  J.  J.  Hardin, 
Attorney  General  T.  A.  McDougal,  and  Major  W.  B.  Warren  should 
go  to  Hancock  County  with  such  forces  as  could  be  raised,  to  put 
an  end  to  the  lawlessness.  When  the  sheriff  heard  of  this,  he  pro- 
nounced the  governor's  proclamation  directing  the  movement  a 
forgery,  and  said,  in  his  own  Proclamation  No.  5,  "I  hope  no 
armed  men  will  come  into  Hancock  County  under  such  circum- 
stances. I  shall  regard  them  in  the  character  of  a  mob,  and  shall 
treat  them  accordingly." 

The  sheriff  labored  under  a  mistake.  The  steps  now  taken 
resulted,  not  in  a  demonstration  of  his  authority,  but  in  the  final 
expulsion  of  all  the  Mormons  from  Illinois  and  Iowa. 

1  Ford's  "  History  of  Illinois,"  p.  410. 


CHAPTER   XIX 

THE   EXPULSION   OF   THE   MORMONS 

General  Hardin  announced  the  coming  of  his  force,  which 
numbered  about  four  hundred  men,  in  a  proclamation  addressed 
"  To  the  Citizens  of  Hancock  County,"  dated  September  27.  He 
called  attention  to  the  lawless  acts  of  the  last  two  years  by  both 
parties,  characterizing  the  recent  burning  of  houses  as  "  acts  which 
disgrace  your  county,  and  are  a  stigma  to  the  state,  the  nation,  and 
the  age."  His  force  would  simply  see  that  the  laws  were  obeyed, 
without  taking  part  with  either  side.  He  forbade  the  assembling 
of  any  armed  force  of  more  than  four  men  while  his  troops  remained 
in  the  county,  urged  the  citizens  to  attend  to  their  ordinary  busi- 
ness, and  directed  officers  having  warrants  for  arrests  in  connection 
with  the  recent  disturbances  to  let  the  attorney  general  decide 
whether  they  needed  the  assistance  of  troops. 

But  the  citizens  were  in  no  mood  for  anything  like  a  restoration 
of  the  recent  order  of  things,  or  for  any  compromise.  The  War- 
saw Signal  of  September  17  had  appealed  to  the  non-Mormons  of 
the  neighboring  counties  to  come  to  the  rescue  of  Hancock,  and 
the  citizens  of  these  counties  now  began  to  hold  meetings  which 
adopted  resolutions  declaring  that  the  Mormons  "  must  go,"  and 
that  they  would  not  permit  them  to  settle  in  any  of  the  counties 
interested.  The  most  important  of  these  meetings,  held  at  Quincy, 
resulted  in  the  appointment  of  a  committee  of  seven  to  visit  Nauvoo, 
and  see  what  arrangements  could  be  made  with  the  Mormons  re- 
garding their  removal  from  the  state.  Notwithstanding  their  defi- 
ant utterances,  the  Mormon  leaders  had  for  some  time  realized  that 
their  position  in  Illinois  was  untenable.  That  Smith  himself  under- 
stood this  before  his  death  is  shown  by  the  following  entry  in  his 
diary :  — 

"Feb.  20,  1844.  I  instructed  the  Twelve  Apostles  to  send  out  a  delegation, 
and  investigate  the  locations  of  California  and  Oregon,  and  hunt  out  a  good  loca- 

338 


THE  EXPULSION   OF  THE  MORMONS  339 

tion  where  we  can  remove  to  after  the  Temple  is  completed,  and  where  we  can 
build  a  city  in  a  day,  and  have  a  government  of  our  own,  get  up  into  the  moun-    ' 
tains,  where  the  devil  cannot  dig  us  out,  and  live  in  a  healthy  climate  where  we 
can  live  as  old  as  we  have  a  mind  to."  * 

The  Mormon  reply  to  the  Quincy  committee  was  given  under 
date  of  September  24  in  the  form  of  a  proclamation  signed  by 
President  Brigham  Young.2  In  a  long  preamble  it  asserted  the 
desire  of  the  Mormons  "  to  live  in  peace  with  all  men,  so  far  as  we 
can,  without  sacrificing  the  right  to  worship  God  according  to  the 
dictates  of  our  own  consciences  " ;  recited  their  previous  expulsion 
from  their  homes,  and  the  unfriendly  view  taken  of  their  "views 
and  principles  "  by  many  of  the  people  of  Illinois,  finally  announc- 
ing that  they  proposed  to  leave  that  country  in  the  spring  "  for 
some  point  so  remote  that  there  will  not  need  to  be  a  difficulty 
with  the  people  and  ourselves."  The  agreement  to  depart  was, 
however,  conditioned  on  the  following  stipulations :  that  the  citi- 
zens would  help  them  to  sell  or  rent  their  properties,  to  get  means 
to  assist  the  widows,  the  fatherless,  and  the  destitute  to  move  with 
the  rest ;  that  "  all  men  will  let  us  alone  with  their  vexatious  law- 
suits "  ;  that  cash,  dry  goods,  oxen,  cattle,  horses,  wagons,  etc.,  be 
given  in  exchange  for  Mormon  property,  the  exchanges  to  be  con- 
ducted by  a  committee  of  both  parties ;  and  that  they  be  subjected 
to  no  more  house  burnings  nor  other  depredations  while  they 
remained. 

The  adjourned  meeting  at  Quincy  received  the  report  of  its 
committee  on  September  26,  and  voted  to  accept  the  proposal  of 
the  Mormons  to  move  in  the  spring,  but  stated  explicitly,  "  We  do 
not  intend  to  bring  ourselves  under  any  obligation  to  purchase 
their  property,  nor  to  furnish  purchasers  for  the  same  ;  but  we  will 
in  no  way  hinder  or  obstruct  them  in  their  efforts  to  sell,  and  will 
expect  them  to  dispose  of  their  property  and  remove  at  the  time 
appointed."  To  manifest  their  sympathy  with  the  unoffending 
poor  of  Nauvoo,  a  committee  of  twenty  was  appointed  to  receive 
subscriptions  for  their  aid.  The  resignation  of  Sheriff  Backenstos 
was  called  for,  and  the  judge  of  that  circuit  was  advised  to  hold  no 
court  in  Hancock  County  that  year. 

The  outcome  of  the  meetings  in  the  different  counties  was  a 

1  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XX,  p.  819. 

2  For  text,  see  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  VI,  p.  187. 


340  THE   STORY   OF  THE   MORMONS 

convention  which  met  in  Carthage  on  October  i  and  2,  and  at 
which  nine  counties  (Hancock  not  included)  were  represented. 
This  convention  adopted  resolutions  setting  forth  the  inability  of 
non-Mormons  to  secure  justice  at  the  hands  of  juries  under  Mor- 
mon influence,  declaring  that  the  only  settlement  of  the  troubles 
could  be  through  the  removal  of  the  Mormons  from  the  state,  and 
repudiating  "  the  impudent  assertion,  so  often  and  so  constantly  put 
forth  by  the  Mormons,  that  they  are  persecuted  for  righteousness' 
sake."  The  counties  were  advised  to  form  a  military  organization, 
and  the  Mormons  were  warned  that  their  opponents  "  solemnly 
pledge  ourselves  to  be  ready  to  act  as  the  occasion  may  require." 

Meanwhile,  the  commissioners  appointed  by  Governor  Ford 
had  been  in  negotiation  with  the  Mormon  authorities,  and  on  Octo- 
ber 1  they,  too,  asked  the  latter  to  submit  their  intentions  in  writ- 
ing. This  they  did  the  same  day.  Their  reply,  signed  by  Brigham 
Young,  President,  and  Willard  Richards,  Clerk,1  referred  the  com- 
mission to  their  response  to  the  Quincy  committee,  and  added  that 
they  had  begun  arrangements  to  remove  from  the  county  before 
the  recent  disturbances,  one  thousand  families,  including  the 
heads  of  the  church,  being  determined  to  start  in  the  spring,  with- 
out regard  to  any  sacrifice  of  their  property  ;  that  the  whole  church 
desired  to  go  with  them,  and  would  do  so  if  the  necessary  means 
could  be  secured  by  sales  of  their  possessions,  but  that  they  wished 
it  "  distinctly  understood  that,  although  we  may  not  find  purchasers 
for  our  property,  we  will  not  sacrifice  it  or  give  it  away,  or  suffer 
it  illegally  to  be  wrested  from  us."  To  this  the  commissioners  on 
October  3  sent  a  reply,  informing  the  Mormons  that  their  proposi- 
tion seemed  to  be  acquiesced  in  by  the  citizens  of  all  the  counties 
interested,  who  would  permit  them  to  depart  in  peace  the  next 
spring  without  further  violence.     They  closed  as  follows :  — 

"After  what  has  been  said  and  written  by  yourselves,  it  will  be  confidently 
expected  by  us  and  the  whole  community,  that  you  will  remove  from  the  state 
with  your  whole  church,  in  the  manner  you  have  agreed  in  your  statement  to  us. 
Should  you  not  do  so,  we  are  satisfied,  however  much  we  may  deprecate  violence 
and  bloodshed,  that  violent  measures  will  be  resorted  to,  to  compel  your  removal, 
which  will  result  in  most  disastrous  consequences  to  yourselves  and  your  oppo- 
nents, and  that  the  end  will  be  your  expulsion  from  the  state.  We  think  that 
steps  should  be  taken  by  you  to  make  it  apparent  that  you  are  actually  preparing 
to  remove  in  the  spring. 

1  Text  in  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  VI,  p.  190. 


THE   EXPULSION   OF   THE   MORMONS  341 

"  By  carrying  out,  in  good  faith,  your  proposition  to  remove,  as  submitted  to 
us,  we  think  you  should  be,  and  will  be,  permitted  to  depart  peaceably  next  spring 
for  your  destination,  west  of  the  Rocky  Mountains.  For  the  purpose  of  main- 
taining law  and  order  in  this  county,  the  commanding  general  purposes  to  leave 
an  armed  force  in  this  county  which  will  be  sufficient  for  that  purpose,  and  which 
will  remain  so  long  as  the  governor  deems  it  necessary.  And  for  the  purpose  of 
preventing  the  use  of  such  force  for  vexatious  or  improper  objects,  we  will  recom- 
mend the  governor  of  the  state  to  send  some  competent  legal  officer  to  remain 
here,  and  have  the  power  of  deciding  what  process  shall  be  executed  by  said 
military  force. 

"  We  recommend  to  you  to  place  every  possible  restraint  in  your  power  over 
the  members  of  your  church,  to  prevent  them  from  committing  acts  of  aggression 
or  retaliation  on  any  citizens  of  the  state,  as  a  contrary  course  may,  and  most 
probably  will,  bring  about  a  collision  which  will  subvert  all  efforts  to  maintain  the 
peace  in  this  county ;  and  we  propose  making  a  similar  request  of  your  oppo- 
nents in  this  and  the  surrounding  counties. 

"  With  many  wishes  that  you  may  find  that  peace  and  prosperity  in  the  land 
of  your  destination  which  you  desire,  we  have  the  honor  to  subscribe  ourselves, 

"John  J.  Hardin,      W.  B.  Warren. 
S.  A.  Douglas,        J.  A.  McDougal." 

On  the  following  day  these  commissioners  made  official  an- 
nouncement of  the  result  of  their  negotiations,  "  to  the  anti-Mor- 
mon citizens  of  Hancock  and  the  surrounding  counties."  They 
expressed  their  belief  in  the  sincerity  of  the  Mormon  promises  ;  ad- 
vised that  the  non-Mormons  be  satisfied  with  obtaining  what  was 
practicable,  even  if  some  of  their  demands  could  not  be  granted,  be- 
seeching them  to  be  orderly,  and  at  the  same  time  warning  them  not 
to  violate  the  law,  which  the  troops  left  in  the  county  by  General 
Hardin  would  enforce  at  all  hazards.    The  report  closed  as  follows:  — 

"  Remember,  whatever  may  be  the  aggression  against  you,  the  sympathy  of  the 
public  may  be  forfeited.  It  cannot  be  denied  that  the  burning  of  the  houses  of 
the  Mormons  in  Hancock  County,  by  which  a  large  number  of  women  and  chil- 
dren have  been  rendered  homeless  and  houseless,  in  the  beginning  of  the  winter, 
was  an  act  criminal  in  itself,  and  disgraceful  to  its  perpetrators.  And  it  should 
also  be  known  that  it  has  led  many  persons  to  believe  that,  even  if  the  Mormons 
are  so  bad  as  they  are  represented,  they  are  no  worse  than  those  who  have  burnt 
their  houses.  Whether  your  cause  is  just  or  unjust,  the  acts  of  these  incendiaries 
have  thus  lost  for  you  something  of  the  sympathy  and  good-will  of  your  fellow- 
citizens ;  and  a  resort  to,  or  persistence  in,  such  a  course  under  existing  circum- 
stances will  make  you  forfeit  all  the  respect  and  sympathy  of  the  community.  We 
trust  and  believe,  for  this  lovely  portion  of  our  state,  a  brighter  day  is  dawning; 
and  we  beseech  all  parties  not  to  seek  to  hasten  its  approach  by  the  torch  of  the 
incendiary,  nor  to  disturb  its  dawn  by  the  clash  of  arms." 


342  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

The  Millennial  Star  of  December  i,  1845,  thus  introduced  this 
correspondence :  — 

THE   END   OF   AMERICAN   LIBERTY 

"  The  following  official  correspondence  shows  that  this  government  has  given 
thirty  thousand  American  citizens  the  choice  OF  death  or  BANISHMENT 
beyond  the  Rocky  Mountains.  Of  these  two  evils  they  have  chosen  the  least. 
WHAT  BOASTED   LIBERTY  !     WHAT  an  honor  to  American  character  ! " 


CHAPTER  XX 
THE    EVACUATION   OF    NAUVOO  —  "THE   LAST   MORMON   WAR" 

The  winter  of  1 845-1 846  in  Hancock  County  passed  without 
any  renewed  outbreak,  but  the  credit  for  this  seems  to  have  been 
due  to  the  firmness  and  good  judgment  of  Major  W.  B.  Warren, 
whom  General  Hardin  placed  in  command  of  the  force  which  he  left 
in  that  county  to  preserve  order,  rather  than  to  any  improvement 
in  the  relations  between  the  two  parties,  even  after  the  Mormons 
had  agreed  to  depart. 

Major  Warren's  command,  which  at  first  consisted  of  one  hun- 
dred men,  and  was  reduced  during  the  winter  to  fifty  and  later  to 
ten,  came  from  Quincy,  and  had  as  subordinate  officers  James  D. 
Morgan  and  B.  M.  Prentiss,  whose  names  became  famous  as  Union 
generals  in  the  war  of  the  rebellion.  Warren  showed  no  favorit- 
ism in  enforcing  his  authority,  and  he  was  called  on  to  exercise  it 
against  both  sides.  The  local  newspapers  of  the  day  contain 
accounts  of  occasional  burnings  during  the  winter,  and  of  murders 
committed  here  and  there.  On  November  17,  a  meeting  of  citi- 
zens of  Warsaw,  who  styled  themselves  "  a  portion  of  the  anti- 
Mormon  party,"  was  held  to  protest  against  such  acts  as  burnings 
and  the  murder  of  a  Mormon,  ten  miles  south  of  Warsaw,  and  to 
demand  adherence  to  the  agreement  entered  into.  On  February  5, 
Major  Warren  had  to  issue  a  warning  to  an  organization  of  anti- 
Mormons  who  had  ordered  a  number  of  Mormon  families  to  leave 
the  county  by  May  1,  if  they  did  not  want  to  be  burned  out. 

Governor  Ford  sent  Mr.  Brayman  to  Hancock  County  as  legal 
counsel  for  the  military  commander.  In  a  report  dated  Decem- 
ber 14,  1845,  Mr.  Brayman  said  of  the  condition  of  affairs  as  he 
found  them  :  — 

"  Judicial  proceedings  are  but  mockeries  of  the  forms  of  law ;  juries,  magis- 
trates and  officers  of  every  grade  concerned  in  the  civil  affairs  of  the  county  par- 
take so  deeply  of  the  prevailing  excitement  that  no  reliance,  as  a  general  thing, 

343 


344  THE   STORY  OF   THE   MORMONS 

can  be  placed  on  their  action.  Crime  enjoys  a  disgraceful  impunity,  and  each 
one  feels  at  liberty  to  commit  any  aggression,  or  to  avenge  his  own  wrongs  to  any 
extent,  without  legal  accountability.  .  .  .  Whether  the  parties  will  become  rec- 
onciled or  quieted,  so  as  to  live  together  in  peace,  is  doubted.  .  .  .  Such  a 
series  of  outrages  and  bold  violations  of  law  as  have  marked  the  history  of  Han- 
cock County  for  several  years  past  is  a  blot  upon  our  institutions ;  ought  not  to 
be  endured  by  a  civilized  people.11  1 

Meanwhile,  the  Mormons  went  on  with  their  preparations  for 
their  westward  march,  selling  their  property  as  best  they  could, 
:  and  making  every  effort  to  trade  real  estate  in  and  out  of  the  city, 
t  and  such  personal  property  as  they  could  not  take  with  them,  for 
|  cattle,  oxen,  mules,  horses,  sheep,  and  wagons.  Early  in  Febru- 
ary the  non-Mormons  were  surprised  to  learn  that  the  Mormons 
at  Nauvoo  had  begun  crossing  the  river  as  a  beginning  of  their 
departure  for  the  far  West.  "  We  scarcely  know  what  to  make  of 
this  movement,"  said  the  Warsaw  Signal,  the  general  belief  being 
that  the  Mormons  would  be  slow  in  carrying  out  their  agreement 
to  leave  "  so  soon  as  grass  would  grow  and  water  run."  The  date 
of  the  first  departure,  it  has  since  been  learned,  was  hastened  by 
the  fact  that  the  grand  jury  in  Springfield,  Illinois,  in  December, 
1845,  had  found  certain  indictments  for  counterfeiting,  in  regard 
to  which  the  Journal  of  that  city,  on  December  25,  gave  the  fol- 
lowing particulars  :  — 

"  During  the  last  week  twelve  bills  of  indictment  for  counterfeiting  Mexican 
dollars  and  our  half  dollars  and  dimes  were  found  by  the  Grand  Jury,  and  pre- 
sented to  the  United  States  Circuit  Court  in  this  city  against  different  persons  in 
and  about  Nauvoo,  embracing  some  of  the  '  Holy  Twelve '  and  other  prominent 
Mormons,  and  persons  in  league  with  them.  The  manner  in  which  the  money 
was  put  into  circulation  was  stated.  At  one  mill  $1500  was  paid  out  for  wheat  in 
one  week.  Whenever  a  land  sale  was  about  to  take  place,  wagons  were  sent  off 
with  the  coin  into  the  land  district  where  such  sale  was  to  take  place,  and  no  dif- 
ficulty occurred  in  exchanging  off  the  counterfeit  coin  for  paper.  ...  So  soon 
as  the  indictments  were  found,  a  request  was  made  by  the  marshal  of  the  Gov- 
ernor of  this  state  for  a  posse,  or  the  assistance  of  the  military  force  stationed  in 
Hancock  County,  to  enable  him  to  arrest  the  alleged  counterfeiters.  Gov.  Ford 
refused  to  grant  the  request.  An  officer  has  since  been  sent  to  Nauvoo  to  make 
the  arrests,  but  we  apprehend  there  is  no  probability  of  his  success." 

The  report  that  a  whole  city  was  practically  for  sale  had  been 
widely  spread,  and  many  persons  —  some  from  the  Eastern  states 
—  began  visiting  it  to  see  what  inducements  were  offered  to  new 

1  Warsaw  Signal,  December  24,  1845. 


THE   EVACUATION   OF   NAUVOO  345 

settlers,  and  what  bargains  were  to  be  had.  Among  these  was 
W.  E.  Matlack,  who  on  April  10  issued,  in  Nauvoo,  the  first  num- 
ber of  a  weekly  newspaper  called  the  Hancock  Eagle.  Matlack 
seems  to  have  been  a  fair-minded  man,  possessed  of  the  courage 
of  his  convictions,  and  his  paper  was  a  better  one  in  a  literary- 
sense  than  the  average  weekly  of  the  day.  In  his  inaugural  edi- 
torial he  said  that  he  favored  the  removal  of  the  Mormons  as  a 
peace  measure,  but  denounced  mob  rule  and  threats  against  the 
Mormons  who  had  not  departed.  The  ultra  Antis  took  offence  at 
this  at  once,  and,  so  far  as  the  Eagle  was  supposed  to  represent 
the  views  of  the  new-comers,  —  who  were  henceforth  called  New 
Citizens,  —  counted  them  little  better  than  the  Mormons  them- 
selves. Among  these,  however,  was  a  class  whom  the  county 
should  have  welcomed,  the  boats,  in  one  week  in  May,  landing 
four  or  five  merchants,  six  physicians,  three  or  four  lawyers,  two 
dentists,  and  two  or  three  hundred  others,  including  laborers. 

The  people  of  Hancock  and  the  surrounding  counties  still  re- 
fused to  believe  that  the  Mormons  were  sincere  in  their  intention 
to  depart,  and  the  county  meetings  of  the  year  before  were  reas- 
sembled to  warn  the  Mormons  that  the  citizens  stood  ready  to 
enforce  their  order.  The  vacillating  course  of  Governor  Ford  did 
not  help  the  situation.  He  issued  an  order  disbanding  Major 
Warren's  force  on  May  1,  and  on  the  following  day  instructed  him 
to  muster  it  into  service  again.  Warren  was  very  outspoken  in 
his  determination  to  protect  the  departing  Mormons,  and  in  a 
proclamation  which  he  issued  he  told  them  to  "  leave  the  fight- 
ing to  be  done  by  my  detachment.  If  we  are  overpowered,  then 
recross  the  river  and  defend  yourselves  and  your  property." 

The  peace  was  preserved  during  May,  and  the  Mormon  exodus 
continued,  Young  with  the  first  company  being  already  well  ad- 
vanced in  his  march  across  Iowa.  Major  Warren  sent  a  weekly 
report  on  the  movement  to  the  Warsaw  Signal.  That  dated  May 
14  said  that  the  ferries  at  Nauvoo  and  at  Fort  Madison  were  each 
taking  across  an  average  of  35  teams  in  twenty-four  hours.  For 
the  week  ending  May  22  he  reported  the  departure  of  539  teams 
and  161 7  persons;  and  for  the  weekending  May  29,  the  departure 
of  269  teams  and  800  persons,  and  he  said  he  had  counted  the  day 
before  617  wagons  in  Nauvoo  ready  to  start. 

But  even  this  activity  did  not  satisfy  the  ultra  element  among 


346  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

the  anti-Mormons,  and  at  a  meeting  in  Carthage,  on  Saturday, 
June  6,  resolutions  drawn  by  Editor  Sharp  of  the  Signal  expressed 
the  belief  that  many  of  the  Mormons  intended  to  remain  in  the 
state,  charged  that  they  continued  to  commit  depredations,  and 
declared  that  the  time  had  come  for  the  citizens  of  the  counties 
affected  to  arm  and  equip  themselves  for  action.  The  Signal 
headed  its  editorial  remarks  on  this  meeting,  "War  declared  in 
Hancock." 

When  the  news  of  the  gathering  at  Carthage  reached  Nauvoo 
it  created  a  panic.  The  Mormons,  lessened  in  number  by  the 
many  departures,  and  with  their  goods  mostly  packed  for  moving, 
were  in  no  situation  to  repel  an  attack  ;  and  they  began  hurrying 
to  the  ferry  until  the  streets  were  blocked  with  teams.  The  New 
Citizens,  although  the  Carthage  meeting  had  appointed  a  commit- 
tee to  confer  with  them,  were  almost  as  much  alarmed,  and  those 
who  could  do  so  sent  away  their  families,  while  several  merchants 
packed  up  their  goods  for  safety.  On  Friday,  June  12,  the  com- 
mittee of  New  Citizens  met  some  600  anti-Mormons  who  had 
assembled  near  Carthage,  and  strenuously  objected  to  their  march- 
ing into  Nauvoo.  As  a  sort  of  compromise,  the  force  consented 
to  rendezvous  at  Golden  Point,  five  miles  south  of  Nauvoo,  and 
there  they  arrived  the  next  day.  This  force,  according  to  the 
Signal's  own  account,  was  a  mere  mob,  three-fourths  of  whom 
went  there  against  their  own  judgment,  and  only  to  try  to  prevent 
extreme  measures.  A  committee  was  at  once  sent  to  Nauvoo  to 
confer  with  the  New  Citizens,  but  it  met  with  a  decided  snubbing. 
The  Nauvoo  people  then  sent  a  committee  to  the  camp,  with  a 
proposition  that  thirty  men  of  the  Antis  march  into  the  city,  and 
leave  three  of  their  number  there  to  report  on  the  progress  of  the 
Mormon  exodus. 

On  Sunday  morning,  before  any  such  agreement  was  reached, 
word  came  from  Nauvoo  that  Sheriff  Backenstos  had  arrived  there 
and  enrolled  a  posse  of  some  500  men,  the  New  Citizens  uniting 
with  the  Mormons  for  the  protection  of  the  place.  This  led  to  an 
examination  of  the  war  supplies  of  the  Antis,  and  the  discovery 
that  they  had  only  five  rounds  of  ammunition  to  a  man,  and  one 
day's  provision.  Thereupon  they  ingloriously  broke  camp  and 
made  off  to  Carthage. 

After  this  nothing  more  serious  than  a  war  of  words  occurred 


THE  EVACUATION  OF  NAUVOO  347 

until  July  ir,  when  an  event  happened  which  aroused  the  feeling 
of  both  parties  to  the  fighting  pitch.  Three  Mormons  from  Nau- 
voo  had  been  harvesting  a  field  of  grain  about  eight  miles  from  the 
city.1  In  some  way  they  angered  a  man  living  near  by  (according 
to  his  wife's  affidavit,  by  shooting  around  his  fields,  using  his  stable 
for  their  horses,  and  feeding  his  oats),  and  he  collected  some  neigh- 
bors, who  gave  the  offenders  a  whipping,  more  or  less  severe, 
according  to  the  account  accepted.  The  men  went  at  once  to  Nau- 
voo,  and  exhibited  their  backs,  and  that  night  a  Mormon  posse 
arrested  seventeen  Antis  and  conveyed  them  to  Nauvoo.  The 
Antis  in  turn  seized  five  Mormons  whom  they  held  as  "  hostages," 
and  the  northern  part  of  Hancock  County  and  a  part  of  McDon- 
ough  were  in  a  state  of  alarm. 

Civil  chaos  ensued.  General , Hardin  and  Major  Warren  had 
joined  the  federal  army  that  was  to  march  against  Mexico,  and 
their  cool  judgment  was  greatly  missed.  One  Carlin,  appointed 
as  a  special  constable,  called  on  the  citizens  of  Hancock  County 
to  assemble  as  his  posse  to  assist  in  executing  warrants  in  Nauvoo, 
and  the  Mormons  of  that  city  at  once  took  steps  to  resist  arrests 
by  him.  Governor  Ford  sent  Major  Parker  of  Fulton  County, 
who  was  a  Whig,  to  make  an  inquiry  at  Nauvoo  and  defend  that 
city  against  rioting,  and  Mr.  Brayman  remained  there  to  report  to 
him  on  the  course  of  affairs. 

What  was  called  at  that  time,  in  Illinois,  "the  last  Mormon 
war"  opened  with  a  fusillade  of  correspondence  between  Carlin 
and  Major  Parker.  Parker  issued  a  proclamation,  calling  on  all 
good  citizens  to  return  to  their  homes,  and  Carlin  declared  that  he 
would  obey  no  authority  which  tried  to  prevent  him  from  doing 
his  duty,  telling  the  major  that  it  would  "  take  something  more 
than  words  "  to  disperse  his  posse.  While  Parker  was  issuing  a 
series  of  proclamations,  the  so-called  posse  was,  on  August  25, 
placed  under  the  command  of  Colonel  J.  B.  Chittenden  of  Adams 
County,  who  was  superseded  three  days  later  by  Colonel  Single- 
ton. Colonel  Singleton  was  successful  in  arranging  with  Major 
Parker  terms  of  peace,  which  provided  among  other  things  that 
all  the  Mormons  should  be  out  of  the  state  in  sixty  days,  except 
heads  of  families  who  remained  to  close  their  business ;  but  the 

1  The  Eagle  stated  that  the  farm  where  the  Mormons  were  at  work  had  been  bought 
by  a  New  Citizen,  who  had  sent  out  both  Mormons  and  New  Citizens  to  cut  the  grain. 


348  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

colonel's  officers  rejected  this  agreement,  and  the  colonel  there- 
upon left  the  camp.  Carlin  at  once  appointed  Colonel  Brockman 
to  the  chief  command.  He  was  a  Campbellite  preacher  who, 
according  to  Ford,  had  been  a  public  defaulter  and  had  been 
"  silenced  "  by  his  church.  After  rejecting  another  offer  of  com- 
promise made  by  the  Mormons,  Brockman,  on  September  n,  with 
about  seven  hundred  men  who  called  themselves  a  posse,  advanced 
against  Nauvoo,  with  some  small  field  pieces.  Governor  Ford  had 
authorized  Major  Flood,  commanding  the  militia  of  Adams  County, 
to  raise  a  force  to  preserve  order  in  Hancock;  but  the  major, 
knowing  that  such  action  would  only  incense  the  force  of  the 
Antis,  disregarded  the  governor's  request.  At  this  juncture  Major 
Parker  was  relieved  of  the  command  at  Nauvoo  and  succeeded  by 
Major  B.  Clifford,  Jr.,  of  the  33rd  regiment  of  Illinois  Volunteers. 

On  the  morning  of  September  12,  Brockman  sent  into  Nauvoo 
*a  demand  for  its  surrender,  with  the  pledge  that  there  would  be 
no  destruction  of  property  or  life  "  unless  absolutely  necessary  in 
self-defence."  Major  Clifford  rejected  this  proposition,  advised 
Brockman  to  disperse  his  force,  and  named  Mayor  Wood  of 
Quincy  and  J.  P.  Eddy,  a  St.  Louis  merchant  then  in  Nauvoo,  as 
recipients  of  any  further  propositions  from  the  Antis. 

The  forces  at  this  time  were  drawn  up  against  one  another,  the 
Mormons  behind  a  breastwork  which  they  had  erected  during  the 
night,  and  the  Antis  on  a  piece  of  high  ground  nearer  the  city 
than  their  camp.  Brayman  says  that  an  estimate  which  placed 
the  Mormon  force  at  five  hundred  or  six  hundred  was  a  great 
exaggeration,  and  that  the  only  artillery  they  had  was  six  pieces 
which  they  fashioned  for  themselves,  by  breaking  some  steamboat 
shafts  to  the  proper  length  and  boring  them  out  so  that  they 
would  receive  a  six-pound  shot. 

When  Clifford's  reply  was  received,  the  commander  of  the  Antis 
sent  out  the  Warsaw  riflemen  as  flankers  on  the  right  and  left ; 
directed  the  Lima  Guards,  with  one  cannon,  to  take  a  position  a 
mile  to  the  front  of  the  camp  and  occupy  the  attention  of  the  men 
behind  the  Mormon  breastwork,  who  had  opened  fire ;  and  then 
marched  the  main  body  through  a  cornfield  and  orchard  to  the 
city  itself.  Both  sides  kept  up  an  artillery  fire  while  the  advance 
was  taking  place. 

When  the  Antis  reached  the  settled  part  of  the  city,  the  firing 


THE   EVACUATION   OF   NAUVOO  349 

became  general,  but  was  of  an  independent  character.  The  Mor- 
mons in  most  cases  fired  from  their  houses,  while  the  Antis  found 
such  shelter  as  they  could  in  a  cornfield  and  along  a  worm  fence. 
After  about  an  hour  of  such  fighting,  Brockman,  discovering  that 
all  of  the  sixty-one  cannon  balls  with  which  he  had  provided  him- 
self had  been  shot  away,  decided  that  it  was  perilous  "  to  risk  a 
further  advance  without  these  necessary  instruments."  Accord- 
ingly, he  ordered  a  retreat  and  his  whole  force  returned  to  its 
camp.  In  this  engagement  no  Antis  were  killed,  and  the  sur- 
geon's list  named  only  eight  wounded,  one  of  whom  died.  Three 
citizens  of  Nauvoo  were  killed.  The  Mormons  had  the  better 
protection  in  their  houses,  but  the  other  side  made  rather  effective 
use  of  their  artillery. 

The  Antis  began  at  once  intrenching  their  camp,  and  sent  to 
Quincy  for  ammunition.  There  were  some  exchanges  of  shots  on 
Sunday  and  Monday,  and  three  Antis  were  wounded  on  the  latter 
day. 

Quincy  responded  promptly  to  the  request  for  ammunition,  but 
the  people  of  that  town  were  by  no  means  unanimously  in  favor 
of  the  "war."  On  Sunday  evening  a  meeting  of  the  peaceably 
inclined  appointed  a  committee  of  one  hundred  to  visit  the  scene 
of  hostilities  and  secure  peace  "  on  the  basis  of  a  removal  of  the 
Mormons."  The  negotiations  of  this  committee  began  on  the 
following  Tuesday,  and  were  continued,  at  times  with  apparent 
hopelessness  of  success,  until  Wednesday  evening,  when  terms  of 
peace  were  finally  signed.  It  required  the  utmost  effort  of  the 
Quincy  committee  to  induce  the  anti-Mormon  force  to  delay  an 
assault  on  the  city,  which  would  have  meant  conflagration  and 
massacre.     The  terms  of  peace  were  as  follows  :  — 

"1.  The  city  of  Nauvoo  will  surrender.  The  force  of  Col.  Brockman 
to  enter  and  take  possession  of  the  city  to  morrow,  the  17th  of  September,  at 
3  o'clock  P.M. 

"2.  The  arms  to  be  delivered  to  the  Quincy  Committee,  to  be  returned  on 
the  crossing  of  the  river. 

"3.  The  Quincy  Committee  pledge  themselves  to  use  their  influence  for  the 
protection  of  persons  and  property  from  all  violence ;  and  the  officers  of  the 
camp  and  the  men  pledge  themselves  to  protect  all  persons  and  property  from 
violence. 

"  4.    The  sick  and  helpless  to  be  protected  and  treated  with  humanity. 

"5.  The  Mormon  population  of  the  city  to  leave  the  State,  or  disperse,  as 
soon  as  they  can  cross  the  river. 


350 


THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 


"  6.  Five  men,  including  the  trustees  of  the  church,  and  five  clerks,  with 
their  families  (William  Pickett  not  one  of  the  number),  to  be  permitted  to  remain 
in  the  city  for  the  disposition  of  property,  free  from  all  molestation  and  personal 
violence. 

"7.  Hostilities  to  cease  immediately,  and  ten  men  of  the  Ouincy  Committee 
to  enter  the  city  in  the  execution  of  their  duty  as  soon  as  they  think  proper." 

The  noticeable  features  of  these  terms  are  the  omission  of  any 
reference  to  the  execution  of  Carlin's  writs,  and  the  engagement 
that  the  Mormons  should  depart  immediately.  The  latter  was  the 
real  object  of  the  "  posse's  "  campaign. 

The  Mormons  had  realized  that  they  could  not  continue  their 
defence,  as  no  reinforcements  could  reach  them,  while  any  tempo- 
rary check  to  their  adversaries  would  only  increase  the  animosity 
of  the  latter.  They  acted,  therefore,  in  good  faith  as  regards  their 
agreement  to  depart.  How  they  went  is  thus  described  in  Bray- 
man's  second  report  to  Governor  Ford  r1  — 

"  These  terms  were  not  definitely  signed  until  the  morning  of  Thursday,  the 
17th,  but,  confident  of  their  ratification,  the  Mormon  population  had  been  busy 
through  the  night  in  removing.  So  firmly  had  they  been  taught  to  believe  that 
their  lives,  their  city,  and  Temple,  would  fall  a  sacrifice  to  the  vengeance  of  their 
enemies,  if  surrendered  to  them,  that  they  fled  in  consternation,  determined  to 
be  beyond  their  reach  at  all  hazards.  This  scene  of  confusion,  fright  and  dis- 
tress was  continued  throughout  the  forenoon.  In  every  part  of  the  city  scenes 
of  destitution,  misery  and  woe  met  the  eye.  Families  were  hurrying  away  from 
their  homes,  without  a  shelter,  —  without  means  of  conveyance,  —  without  tents, 
money,  or  a  day's  provision,  with  as  much  of  their  household  stuff  as  they  could 
carry  in  their  hands.  Sick  men  and  women  were  carried  upon  their  beds  —  weary 
mothers,  with  helpless  babes  dying  in  the  arms,  hurried  away  —  all  fleeing,  they 
scarcely  knew  or  cared  whither,  so  it  was  from  their  enemies,  whom  they  feared 
more  than  the  waves  of  the  Mississippi,  or  the  heat,  and  hunger  and  lingering 
life  and  dreaded  death  of  the  prairies  on  which  they  were  about  to  be  cast.  The 
ferry  boats  were  crowded,  and  the  river  bank  was  lined  with  anxious  fugitives, 
sadly  awaiting  their  turn  to  pass  over  and  take  up  their  solitary  march  to  the 
wilderness." 

On  the  afternoon  of  the  17th,  Brockman's  force,  with  which 
the  members  of  the  Ouincy  committee  had  been  assigned  a  place, 
marched  into  Nauvoo  and  through  it,  encamping  near  the  river  on 
the  southern  boundary.  Curiosity  to  see  the  Mormon  city  had 
swelled  the  number  who  entered  at  the  same  time  with  the  posse 
to  nearly  two  thousand  men,   but  there  was   no  disorder.     The 

1  For  Brayman's  reports,  see  Warsaw  Signal,  October  20,  1846. 


THE   EVACUATION   OF   NAUVOO  35 1 

streets  were  practically  deserted,  and  the  few  Mormons  who 
remained  were  busy  with  their  preparations  to  cross  the  river. 
Brockman,  to  make  his  victory  certain,  ordered  that  all  citizens 
of  Nauvoo  who  had  sided  with  the  Mormons  should  leave  the 
state,  thus  including  many  of  the  New  Citizens.  The  order  was 
enforced  on  September  18,  "with  many  circumstances  of  the 
utmost  cruelty  and  injustice,"  according  to  Brayman's  report. 
"  Bands  of  armed  men,"  he  said,  "  traversed  the  city,  entering  the 
houses  of  citizens,  robbing  them  of  arms,  throwing  their  household 
goods  out  of  doors,  insulting  them,  and  threatening  their  lives." 


CHAPTER   XXI 

NAUVOO   AFTER   THE    EXODUS 

Brockman's  force  was  disbanded  after  its  object  had  been 
accomplished,  and  all  returned  to  their  homes  but  about  one 
hundred,  who  remained  in  Nauvoo  to  see  that  no  Mormons 
came  back.  These  men,  whose  number  gradually  decreased, 
provided  what  protection  and  government  the  place  then  enjoyed. 
Governor  Ford  received  much  censure  from  the  state  at  large  for 
the  lawless  doings  of  the  recent  months.  A  citizens'  meeting  at 
Springfield  demanded  that  he  call  out  a  force  sufficient  "  to  restore 
the  supremacy  of  the  law,  and  bring  the  offenders  to  justice."  He 
did  call  on  Hancock  County  for  volunteers  to  restore  order,  but  a 
public  meeting  in  Carthage  practically  defied  him.  He,  however, 
secured  a  force  of  about  two  hundred  men,  with  which  he  marched 
into  Nauvoo,  greatly  to  the  indignation  of  the  Hancock  County 
people.  His  stay  there  was  marked  by  incidents  which  showed 
how  his  erratic  course  in  recent  years  had  deprived  him  of  public 
respect,  and  which  explain  some  of  the  bitterness  toward  the 
county  which  characterizes  his  "  History."  One  of  these  was  the 
presentation  to  him  of  a  petticoat  as  typical  of  his  rule.  When 
Ford  was  succeeded  as  governor  by  French,  the  latter  withdrew 
the  militia  from  the  county,  and,  in  an  address  to  the  citizens,  said, 
"  I  confidently  rely  upon  your  assistance  and  influence  to  aid  in 
preventing  any  act  of  a  violent  character  in  future."  Matters  in 
the  county  then  quieted  down.  The  Warsaw  newspapers,  in  place 
of  anti-Mormon  literature,  began  to  print  appeals  to  new  settlers, 
setting  forth  the  advantages  of  the  neighborhood.  But  a  news- 
paper war  soon  followed  between  two  factions  in  Nauvoo,  one  of 
which  contended  that  the  place  was  an  assemblage  of  gamblers 
and  saloon-keepers,  while  the  other  defended  its  reputation.  This 
latter  view,  however,  was  not  established,  and  most  of  the  houses 
remained  tenantless. 

352 


NAUVOO   AFTER  THE   EXODUS  353 

Amid  all  their  troubles  in  Nauvoo  the  Mormon  authorities 
never  lost  sight  of  one  object,  the  completion  of  the  Temple.  To 
the  non-Mormons,  and  even  to  many  in  the  church,  it  seemed  inex- 
plicable why  so  much  zeal  and  money  should  be  expended  in  fin- 
ishing a  structure  that  was  to  be  at  once  abandoned.  Before  the 
agreement  to  leave  the  state  was  made,  a  Warsaw  newspaper  pre- 
dicted that  the  completion  of  the  Temple  would  end  the  reign  of 
the  Mormon  leaders,  since  their  followers  were  held  together  by 
the  expectation  of  some  supernatural  manifestation  of  power  in 
their  behalf  at  that  time.1  Another  outside  newspaper  suggested 
that  they  intended  to  use  it  as  a  fort. 

Orson  Pratt,  in  a  letter  to  the  Saints  in  the  Eastern  states,  writ- 
ten at  the  time  of  the  agreement  to  depart,  answering  the  query 
why  the  Lord  commanded  them  to  build  a  house  out  of  which  he 
would  then  suffer  them  to  be  driven  at  once,  quoted  a  paragraph 
from  the  "revelation"  of  January  19,  1841,  which  commanded  the 
building  of  the  Temple  "  that  you  may  prove  yourselves  unto  me, 
that  ye  are  faithful  in  all  things  whatsoever  I  command  you,  that 
I  may  bless  you  and  cover  you  with  honor,  immortality,  and  eternal 
life." 

The  cap-stone  of  the  Temple  was  laid  in  place  early  on  the 
morning  of  May  24,  1845,  amid  shouts  of  "  Hosannah  to  God  and 
the  Lamb,"  music  by  the  band,  and  the  singing  of  a  hymn. 

The  first  meeting  was  held  in  the  Temple  on  October  5,  1845, 
and  from  that  time  the  edifice  was  used  almost  constantly  in  ad- 
ministering the  ordinances  (baptism,  endowment,  etc.).  Brigham 
Young  says  that  on  one  occasion  he  continued  this  work  from 
5  p.m.  to  3.30  a.m.,  and  others  of  the  Quorum  assisted. 

The  ceremony  of  the  "endowment,"  although  considered  very 
secret,  has  been  described  by  many  persons  who  have  gone  through 
it.  The  descriptions  by  Elder  Hyde  and  I.  McGee  Van  Dusen  and 
his  wife  go  into  details.     A  man  and  wife  received  notice  to  appear 

1  A  man  from  the  neighborhood  who  visited  Nauvoo  in  1843  to  buy  calves  called 
on  a  blind  man,  of  whom  he  says :  "  He  told  me  he  had  a  nice  home  in  Massachusetts, 
which  gave  them  a  good  support.  But  one  of  the  Mormon  elders  preaching  in  that 
country  called  on  him  and  told  him  if  he  would  sell  out  and  go  to  Nauvoo  the  Prophet 
would  restore  his  sight.  He  sold  out  and  had  come  to  the  city  and  spent  all  his  means, 
and  was  now  in  great  need.  I  asked  why  the  Prophet  did  not  open  his  eyes.  He  replied 
that  Joseph  had  informed  him  that  he  could  not  open  his  eyes  till  the  Temple  was  fin- 
ished."—  Gregg,  "  History  of  Hancock  County,"  p.  375. 

2A 


354  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

at  the  Temple  at  Nauvoo  at  5  a.m.,  he  to  wear  white  drawers,  and 
she  to  bring  her  nightclothes  with  her.  Passing  to  the  upper  floor, 
they  were  told  to  remove  their  hats  and  outer  wraps,  and  were  then 
led  into  a  narrow  hall,  at  the  end  of  which  stood  a  man  who  directed 
the  husband  to  pass  through  a  door  on  the  right,  and  the  wife  to 
one  on  the  left.  The  candidates  were  then  questioned  as  to  their 
preparation  for  the  initiation,  and  if  this  resulted  satisfactorily, 
they  were  directed  to  remove  all  their  outer  clothing.  This  ended 
the  "first  degree."  In  the  next  room  their  remaining  clothing 
was  removed  and  they  received  a  bath,  with  some  mummeries 
which  may  best  be  omitted.  Next  they  were  anointed  all  over 
with  oil  poured  from  a  horn,  and  pronounced  "  the  Lord's  anointed," 
and  a  priest  ordained  them  to  be  "  king  (or  queen)  in  time  and 
eternity."  The  man  was  now  furnished  with  a  white  cotton  under- 
garment of  an  original  design,  over  which  he  put  his  shirt,  and  the 
woman  was  given  a  somewhat  similar  article,  together  with  a  che- 
mise, nightgown,  and  white  stockings.  Each  was  then  conducted 
into  another  apartment  and  left  there  alone  in  silence  for  some 
time.  Then  a  rumbling  noise  was  heard,  and  Brigham  Young 
appeared,  reciting  some  words,  beginning  "  Let  there  be  light," 
and  ending  "  Now  let  us  make  man  in  our  image,  after  our  like- 
ness." Approaching  the  man  first,  he  went  through  a  form  of 
making  him  out  of  the  dust;  then,  passing  into  the  other  room,  he 
formed  the  woman  out  of  a  rib  he  had  taken  from  the  man.  Giv- 
ing this  Eve  to  the  man  Adam,  he  led  them  into  a  large  room 
decorated  to  represent  Eden,  and,  after  giving  them  divers  instruc- 
tions, left  them  to  themselves. 

Much  was  said  in  later  years  about  the  requirement  of  the 
endowment  oath.  When  General  Maxwell  tried  to  prevent  the 
seating  of  Cannon  as  Delegate  to  Congress  in  1873,  one  of  his 
charges  was  that  Cannon  had,  in  the  Endowment  House,  taken  an 
oath  against  the  United  States  government.  This  called  out  affi- 
davits by  some  of  the  leading  anti-Young  Mormons  of  the  day, 
including  E.  L.  T.  Harrison,  that  they  had  gone  through  the 
Endowment  House  without  taking  any  oath  of  the  kind.  But 
Hyde,  in  his  description  of  the  ceremony,  says :  — 

"  We  were  sworn  to  cherish  constant  enmity  toward  the  United  States  Gov- 
ernment for  not  avenging  the  death  of  Smith,  or  righting  the  persecutions  of  the 
Saints ;  to  do  all  that  we  could  toward  destroying,  tearing  down  or  overturning 


NAUVOO   AFTER   THE   EXODUS  355 

that  government ;  to  endeavor  to  baffle  its  designs  and  frustrate  its  intentions ; 
to  renounce  all  allegiance  and  refuse  all  submission.  If  unable  to  do  anything 
ourselves  toward  the  accomplishment  of  these  objects,  to  teach  it  to  our  children 
from  the  nursery,  impress  it  upon  them  from  the  death  bed,  entail  it  upon  them 
as  a  legacy."  * 

In  the  suit  of  Charlotte  Arthur  against  Brigham  Young's  estate, 
to  recover  a  lot  in  Salt  Lake  City  which  she  alleged  that  Young 
had  unlawfully  taken  possession  of,  her  verified  complaint  (filed 
July  ir,  1874)  alleged  that  the  endowment  oath  contained  the  fol- 
lowing declaration :  — 

"  To  obey  him,  the  Lord's  anointed,  in  all  his  orders,  spiritual  and  temporal, 
and  the  priesthood  or  either  of  them,  and  all  church  authorities  in  like  manner; 
that  this  obligation  is  superior  to  all  the  laws  of  the  United  States,  and  all  earthly 
laws ;  that  enmity  should  be  cherished  against  the  government  of  the  United 
States  ;  that  the  blood  of  Joseph  Smith,  the  Prophet,  and  Apostles  slain  in  this 
generation  shall  be  avenged." 

As  soon  as  the  agreement  to  leave  the  state  was  made,  the 
Mormons  tried  hard  to  sell  or  lease  the  Temple,  but  in  vain ;  and 
when  the  last  Mormon  departed,  the  structure  was  left  to  the  mercy 
of  the  Hancock  County  "posse."  Colonel  Kane,  in  his  description 
of  his  visit  to  Nauvoo  soon  after  the  evacuation,  says  that  the 
militia  had  defiled  and  defaced  such  features  as  the  shrines  and  the 
baptismal  font,  the  apartment  containing  the  latter  being  rendered 
"too  noisome  to  abide  in." 

Had  the  building  been  permitted  to  stand,  it  would  have  been 
to  Nauvoo  something  on  which  the  town  could  have  looked  as  its 
most  remarkable  feature.  But  early  on  the  morning  of  Novem- 
ber 19,  1848,  the  structure  was  found  to  be  on  fire,  evidently  the 
work  of  an  incendiary,  and  what  the  flames  could  eat  up  was  soon 
destroyed.  The  Nauvoo  Patriot  deplored  the  destruction  of  "  a 
work  of  art  at  once  the  most  elegant  in  its  construction,  and  the 
most  renowned  in  its  celebrity,  of  any  in  the  whole  West." 

When  the  Icarians,  a  band  of  French  Socialists,  settled  in 
Nauvoo,  they  undertook,  in  1850,  to  rebuild  the  edifice  for  use 
as  their  halls  of  reunion  and  schools.  After  they  had  expended  on 
this  work  a  good  deal  of  "time  and  labor,  the  city  was  visited  by  a 
cyclone  on  May  27  of  that  year,  which  left  standing  only  a  part  of 
the  west  wall.     Out  of  the  stone  the  Icarians  then  built  a  school- 

1  Hyde's  "  Mormonism,"  p.  97. 


356  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

house,  but  nothing  original  now  remains  on  the  site  except  the  old 
well. 

The  Nauvoo  of  to-day  is  a  town  of  only  1321  inhabitants.  The 
people  are  largely  of  German  origin,  and  the  leading  occupation  is 
fruit  growing.  The  site  of  the  Temple  is  occupied  by  two  modern 
buildings.  A  part  of  Nauvoo  House  is  still  standing,  as  are 
Brigham  Young's  former  residence,  Joseph  Smith's  "  new  man- 
sion," and  other  houses  which  Mormons  occupied. 

The  Mormons  in  Iowa  were  no  more  popular  with  their  non- 
Mormon  neighbors  there  than  were  those  in  Illinois,  and  after  the 
murders  by  the  Hodges,  and  other  crimes  charged  to  the  brethren, 
a  mass  meeting  of  Lee  County  inhabitants  was  held,  which  adopted 
resolutions  declaring  that  the  Mormons  and  the  old  settlers  could 
not  live  together  and  that  the  Mormons  must  depart,  citizens  being 
requested  to  aid  in  this  movement  by  exchanging  property  with  the 
emigrants.  In  1847  the  last  of  these  objectionable  citizens  left  the 
county. 


BOOK   V 

THE  MIGRATION  TO    UTAH 

CHAPTER   I 

PREPARATIONS   FOR  THE   LONG   MARCH 

Two  things  may  be  accepted  as  facts  with  regard  to  the  mi- 
gration of  the  Mormons  westward  from  Illinois:  first,  that  they 
would  not  have  moved  had  they  not  been  compelled  to;  and  second,  \ 
that  they  did  not  know  definitely  where  they  were  going  when  \ 
they  started.  Although  Joseph  Smith  showed  an  uncertainty  of 
his  position  by  his  instruction  that  the  Twelve  should  look  for  a 
place  in  California  or  Oregon  to  which  his  people  might  move,  he 
considered  this  removal  so  remote  a  possibility  that  he  was  at  the 
same  time  beginning  his  campaign  for  the  presidency  of  the  United 
States.  As  late  as  the  spring  of  1845,  removal  was  considered  by 
the  leaders  as  only  an  alternative.  In  April,  Brigham  Young, 
Willard  Richards,  the  two  Pratts,  and  others  issued  an  address  to 
President  Polk,  which  was  sent  to  the  governors  of  all  the  states 
but  Illinois  and  Missouri,  setting  forth  their  previous  trials,  and 
containing  this  declaration  :  — 

"  In  the  name  of  Israel's  God,  and  by  virtue  of  multiplied  ties  of  country  and 
kindred,  we  ask  your  friendly  interposition  in  our  favor.     Will  it  be  too  much 
for  us  to  ask  you  to  convene  a  special  session  of  Congress  and  furnish  us  an  asy- 
lum where  we  can  enjoy  our  rights  of  conscience  and  religion  unmolested  ?     Or 
will  you,  in  special  message  to  that  body  when  convened,  recommend  a  remon- 
strance against  such  unhallowed  acts  of  oppression  and  expatriation  as  this  people 
have  continued  to  receive  from  the  states  of  Missouri  and  Illinois?     Or  will  you 
favor  us  by  your  personal  influence  and  by  your  official  rank?     Or  will  you  ex^J 
press  your  views  concerning  what  is  called  the  Great  Western  Measure  of  coloniz-  \ 
ing  the   Latter-Day  Saints   in  Oregon,   the   Northwestern  Territory,   or   some  \ 
location  remote  from  the  states,  where  the  hand  of  oppression  will  not    crush  ; 
every  noble  principle  and  extinguish  every  patriotic  feeling?" 

357 


1?/ 


358  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

After  the  publication  of  the  correspondence  between  the  Hardin 
commission  and  the  Mormon  authorities,  Orson  Pratt  issued  an 
appeal  "to  American  citizens,"  in  which,  referring  to  what  he 
called  the  proposed  "banishment"  of  the  Mormons,  he  said :  "Ye 
fathers  of  the  Revolution!  Ye  patriots  of  '76!  Is  it  for  this  ye 
toiled  and  suffered  and  bled  ?  .  .  .  Must  they  be  driven  from  this 
renowned  republic  to  seek  an  asylum  among  other  nations,  or 
wander  as  hopeless  exiles  among  the  red  men  of  the  western  wilds  ? 
Americans,  will  ye  suffer  this  ?  Editors,  will  ye  not  speak  ?  Fel- 
low-citizens, will  ye  not  awake?"1 

Their  destination  could  not  have  been  determined  in  advance, 
if  because  so  little  was  known  of  the  Far  West.  The  territory  now 
embraced  in  the  boundaries  of  California  and  Utah  was  then  under 
Mexican  government,  and  "  California  "  was,  in  common  use,  a 
name  covering  the  Pacific  coast  and  a  stretch  of  land  extending 
indefinitely  eastward.  Oregon  had  been  heard  of  a  good  deal, 
and  it,  as  well  as  Vancouver  Island,  had  been  spoken  of  as  a  pos- 
sible goal  if  a  westward  migration  became  necessary.  Lorenzo 
Snow,  in  describing  the  westward  start,  said :  "  On  the  first  of 
March,  the  ground  covered  with  snow,  we  broke  encampment 
about  noon,  and  soon  nearly  four  hundred  wagons  were  moving  to 
—  we  knew  not  where."  2 

The  first  step  taken  by  the  Mormon  authorities  to  explain  the 
removal  to  their  people  was  an  explanation  made  at  a  conference 
in  the  new  Temple,  three  days  after  the  correspondence  with  the 
commission  closed.  P.  P.  Pratt  stated  to  the  conference  that  the 
removal  meant  that  the  Lord  designed  to  lead  them  to  a  wider  field 
of  action,  where  no  one  could  say  that  they  crowded  their  neigh- 
bors. In  such  a  place  they  could,  in  five  years,  become  richer 
than  they  then  were,  and  could  build  a  bigger  and  a  better  Temple. 
"  It  has  cost  us,"  said  he,  "  more  for  sickness,  defence  against 
mob  exactions,  persecutions,  and  to  purchase  lands  in  this  place, 
than  as  much  improvement  will  cost  in  another."  It  was  then 
voted  unanimously  that  the  Saints  would  move  en  masse  to  the 
West,  and  that  every  man  would  give  all  the  help  he  could  to  assist 
the  poorer  members  of  the  community  in  making  the  journey.3 

1  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  VI,  p.  193.  2  "Biography  of  Lorenzo  Snow,"  p.  86. 

3  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  VI,  p.  196.  Wilford  Woodruff,  in  an  appeal  to  the  Saints  in 
Great  Britain,  asked  them  to  buy  Mormon  books  in  order  to  assist  the  Presidency  with 
funds  with  which  to  take  the  poor  Saints  with  them  westward. 


PREPARATIONS    FOR   THE    LONG    MARCH 


359 


Brighara  Young  next  issued  an  address  to  the  church  at  large, 
stating  that  even  the  Mormon  Bible  had  foretold  what  might  be 
the  conduct  of  the  American  nation  toward  "  the  Israel  of  the  last 
days,"  and  urging  all  to  prepare  to  make  the  journey.  A  confer- 
ence of  Mormons  in  New  York  City  on  November  12,  1845,  at-  l 
tended  by  brethren  from  New  York  State,  New  Jersey,  and 
Connecticut,  voted  that  "the  church  in  this  city  move,  one  and  all, 
west  of  the  Rocky  Mountains  between  this  and  next  season,  either 
by  land  or  by  water." 

Active  preparations  for  the  removal  began  in  and  around 
Nauvoo  at  once.  All  who  had  property  began  trading  it  for  arti- 
cles that  would  be  needed  on  the  journey.  Real  estate  was  traded 
or  sold  for  what  it  would  bring,  and  the  Eagle  was  full  of  adver- 
tisements of  property  to  sell,  including  the  Mansion  House,  Ma- 
sonic Hall,  and  the  Armory.  The  Mormons  would  load  in  wagons 
what  furniture  they  could  not  take  West  with  them,  and  trade  it 
in  the  neighborhood  for  things  more  useful.  The  church  author- 
ities advertised  for  one  thousand  yokes  of  oxen  and  all  the  cattle 
and  mules  that  might  be  offered,  oxen  bringing  from  $40  to  $50 
a  yoke.  The  necessary  outfit  for  a  family  of  five  was  calculated  / 
to  be  one  wagon,  three  yokes  of  cattle,  two  cows,  two  beef  cattle, 
three  sheep,  one  thousand  pounds  of  flour,  twenty  pounds  of  sugar, 
a  tent  and  bedding,  seeds,  farming  tools,  and  a  rifle  —  all  estimated 
to  cost  about  $250.  Three  or  four  hundred  Mormons  were  sent 
to  more  distant  points  in  Illinois  and  Iowa  for  draft  animals,  and, 
when  the  Western  procession  started,  they  boasted  that  they  owned 
the  best  cattle  and  horses  in  the  country. 

In  the  city  the  men  were  organized  into  companies,  each  of 
which  included  such  workmen  as  wagonmakers,  blacksmiths,  and 
carpenters,  and  the  task  of  making  wagons,  tents,  etc.,  was  hurried 
to  the  utmost.  "  Nauvoo  was  constituted  into  one  great  wagon 
shop,"  wrote  John  Taylor.  If  any  members  of  the  community 
were  not  skilled  in  the  work  now  in  demand,  they  were  sent  to 
St.  Louis,  Galena,  Burlington,  or  some  other  of  the  larger  towns, 
to  find  profitable  employment  during  the  winter,  and  thus  add  to 
the  moving  fund. 

On  January  20,  1846,  the  High  Council  issued  a  circular  an- 
nouncing that,  early  in  March,  a  company  of  hardy  young  men, 
with  some  families,  would  be  sent  into  the  Western  country,  with 


360  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

farming  utensils  and  seed,  to  put  in  a  crop  and  erect  houses  for 
others  who  would  follow  as  soon  as  the  grass  was  high  enough  for 
pasture. 

This  circular  contained  also  the  following  declaration  :  — 

"  We  venture  to  say  that  our  brethren  have  made  no  counterfeit  money ; 
and  if  any  miller  has  received  $1500  base  coin  in  a  week  from  us,  let  him  testify. 
If  any  land  agent  of  the  general  government  has  received  wagon  loads  of  base 
coin  from  us  in  payment  for  lands,  let  him  say  so.  Or  if  he  has  received  any  at 
all,  let  him  tell  it.     These  witnesses  against  us  have  spun  a  long  yarn." 

This  referred  to  the  charges  of  counterfeiting,  which  had  re- 
sulted in  the  indictment  of  some  of  the  Twelve  at  Springfield,  and 
which  hastened  the  first  departures  across  the  river.  That  coun- 
terfeiting was  common  in  the  Western  country  at  that  time  is  a 
matter  of  history,  and  the  Mormons  themselves  had  accused  such 
leading  members  of  their  church  as  Cowdery  of  being  engaged  in 
the  business.  The  persons  indicted  at  Springfield  were  never 
tried,  so  that  the  question  of  their  guilt  cannot  be  decided.  Tul- 
lidge's  pro-Mormon  "  Life  of  Brigham  Young "  mentions  an 
incident  which  occurred  when  the  refugees  had  gone  only  as  far 
as  the  Chariton  River  in  Iowa,  which  both  admits  that  they  had 
counterfeit  money  among  them,  and  shows  the  mild  view  which  a 
Bishop  of  the  church  took  of  the  offence  of  passing  it :  — 

"  About  this  time  also  an  attempt  was  made  to  pass  counterfeit  money.  It 
was  the  case  of  a  young  man  who  bought  from  a  Mr.  Cochran  a  yoke  of  oxen,  a 
cow  and  a  chain  for  $50.  Bishop  Miller  wrote  to  Brigham  to  excuse  the  young 
man,  but  to  help  Cochran  to  restitution.  The  President  was  roused  to  great  an- 
ger, the  Bishop  was  severely  rebuked,  and  the  anathemas  of  the  leader  from  that 
time  were  thundered  against  thieves  and  '  bogus  men,'  and  passers  of  bogus 
money.  .  .  .  The  following  is  a  minute  of  his  diary  of  a  council  on  the  next 
Sunday,  with  the  twelve  bishops  and  captains :  '  I  told  them  I  was  satisfied  the 
course  we  were  taking  would  prove  to  be  the  salvation,  not  only  of  the  camp  but 
of  the  Saints  left  behind.  But  there  had  been  things  done  which  were  wrong. 
Some  pleaded  our  sufferings  from  persecution,  and  the  loss  of  our  homes  and 
property,  as  a  justification  for  retaliating  on  our  enemies  ;  but  such  a  course  tends 
to  destroy  the  Kingdom  of  God." 

As  soon  as  the  leaders  decided  to  make  a  start,  they  sent  a 
petition  to  the  governor  of  Iowa  Territory,  explaining  their  inten- 
tion to  pass  through  that  domain,  and  asking  for  his  protection 
during  the  temporary  stay  they  might  make  there.  No  opposition 
to  them  seems  to  have  been  shown  by  the  Iowans,  who  on  the  con- 


PREPARATIONS    FOR    THE    LONG    MARCH  361 

trary  employed  them  as  laborers,  sold  them  such  goods  as  they 
could  pay  for,  and  invited  their  musicians  to  give  concerts  at  the 
resting  points.  Lee's  experience  in  Iowa  confirmed  him,  he  says, 
in  his  previous  opinion  that  much  of  the  Mormons'  trouble  was  due 
to  "wild,  ignorant  fanatics";  "for,"  he  adds,  "only  a  few  years 
before,  these  same  people  were  our  most  bitter  enemies,  and,  when 
we  came  again  and  behaved  ourselves,  they  treated  us  with  the 
utmost  kindness  and  hospitality."  1 

How  much  property  the  Mormons  sacrificed  in  Illinois  cannot 
be  ascertained  with  accuracy.  An  investigation  of  all  the  testi- 
mony obtainable  on  the  subject  leads  to  the  conclusion  that  a  good 
deal  of  their  real  estate  was  disposed  of  at  a  fair  price,  and  that 
there  were  many  cases  of  severe  individual  loss.  Major  Warren, 
in  a  communication  to  the  Signal  from  Nauvoo,  in  May,  1846, 
said  that  few  of  the  Mormons'  farms  remained  unsold,  and  that 
three-fourths  of  the  improved  property  on  the  flat  in  Nauvoo  had 
been  disposed  of. 

A  correspondent  of  the  Signal,  answering  on  April  11  an 
assertion  that  the  Mormons  had  a  good  deal  of  real  estate  to  dis- 
pose of  before  they  could  leave,  replied  that  most  of  their  farms 
were  sold,  and  that  there  were  more  inquiries  after  the  others  than 
there  were  farms.  As  to  the  real  estate  in  the  city,  he  explained  : 
"  It  is  scattered  over  an  area  of  eight  or  ten  square  miles,  and  con- 
tains from  1500  to  2000  houses,  four-fifths  of  which,  at  least,  are 
wretched  cabins  of  no  permanent  value  whatever.  There  are, 
however,  200  or  300  houses,  large  and  small,  built  of  brick  and 
other  desirable  material.  Such  will  mostly  sell,  though  many  of 
them,  owing  to  the  distance  from  the  river  and  other  unfavorable 
circumstances,  only  at  a  very  great  sacrifice."  2 

A  general  epistle  to  the  church  from  the  Twelve,  dated  Win- 
ter Quarters,  December  23,  1847,  stated  that  the  property  of  the 
Saints    in    Hancock    County  was    "  little  or  no    better  than  con 
fiscated."  3 

1  "  Mormonism  Unveiled,"  p.  179. 

2  "  A  score  or  more  of  chimneys  on  the  northern  boundary  of  the  city  marked  the 
site  of  houses  deliberately  burned  for  fuel  during  the  winter  of  1845-1846."  —  Hancock 
Eagle,  May  29,  1846. 

8  See  John  Taylor's  address,  p.  41 1  post. 


CHAPTER   II 
FROM   THE   MISSISSIPPI   TO   THE   MISSOURI 

The  first  party  to  leave  Nauvoo  began  crossing  the  Mississippi 
early  in  February,  1846,  using  flatboats  propelled  by  oars  for  the 
wagons  and  animals,  and  small  boats  for  persons  and  the  lighter 
baggage.  It  soon  became  colder  and  snow  fell,  and  after  the  16th 
those  who  remained  were  able  to  cross  on  the  ice. 

Brigham  Young,  with  a  few  attendants,  had  crossed  on  Febru- 
ary 10,  and  selected  a  point  on  Sugar  Creek  as  a  gathering  place.1 
He  seems  to  have  returned  secretly  to  the  city  for  a  few  days  to 
arrange  for  the  departure  of  his  family,  and  Lee  says  that  he  did 
not  have  teams  enough  at  that  time  for  their  conveyance,  adding, 
"  such  as  were  in  danger  of  being  arrested  were  helped  away  first." 
John  Taylor  says  that  those  who  crossed  the  river  in  February 
included  the  Twelve,  the  High  Council,  and  about  four  hundred 
families.2 

"  Camp  of  Israel  "  was  the  name  adopted  for  the  camp  in  which 
President  Young  and  the  Twelve  might  be,  and  this  name  moved 
westward  with  them.  The  camp  on  Sugar  Creek  was  the  first  of  I  v 
these,  and  there,  on  February  17,  Young  addressed  the  company 
from  a  wagon.  He  outlined  the  journey  before  them,  declaring 
that  order  would  be  preserved,  and  that  all  who  wished  to  live  in 
peace  when  the  actual  march  began  "  must  toe  the  mark,"  ending 
with  a  call  for  a  show  of  hands  by  those  who  wanted  to  make  the 
move.     The  vote  in  favor  of  going  West  was  unanimous.3 

1  "  Mormonism  Unveiled,"  p.  171. 

2  "  February  14  I  crossed  the  river  with  my  family  and  teams,  and  encamped  not 
far  from  the  Sugar  Creek  encampment,  taking  possession  of  a  vacant  log  house  on 
account  of  the  extreme  cold."  —  P.  P.  Pratt,  "  Autobiography,"  p.  378. 

3  "At  a  Council  in  Nauvoo  of  the  men  who  were  to  act  as  the  captains  of  the  peo- 
ple in  that  famous  exodus,  one  after  the  other  brought  up  difficulties  in  their  path,  until 
the  prospect  was  without  one  poor  speck  of  daylight.  The  good  nature  of  George  A. 
Smith  was  provoked  at  last,  when  he  sprang  up  and  observed,  with  his  quaint  humor, 
that  had  now  a  touch  of  the  grand  in  it,  '  If  there  is  no  God  in  Israel  we  are  a  sucked-in 
set  of  fellows.  But  I  am  going  to  take  my  family  and  the  Lord  will  open  the  wav  '  "  — 
Tullidge,  "  History  of  Salt  Lake  City,"  p.  17. 

362 


FROM   THE   MISSISSIPPI   TO   THE   MISSOURI  363 

The  turning  out  of  doors  in  midwinter  of  so  many  persons  of 
all  ages  and  both  sexes,  accustomed  to  the  shelter  of  comfortable 
homes,  entailed  much  suffering.  A  covered  wagon  or  a  tent  is 
a  poor  protection  from  wintry  blasts,  and  a  camp  fire  in  the  open 
air,  even  with  a  bright  sky  overhead,  is  a  poor  substitute  for 
a  stove.  Their  first  move,  therefore,  gave  the  emigrants  a  taste  of 
the  trials  they  were  to  endure.  While  they  were  at  Sugar  Creek 
the  thermometer  dropped  to  200  below  zero,  and  heavy  falls  of 
snow  occurred.  Several  children  were  born  at  this  point,  before 
the  actual  Western  journey  began,  and  the  sick  and  the  feeble 
entered  upon  their  sufferings  at  once.  Before  that  camp  broke 
up  it  was  found  necessary,  too,  to  buy  grain  for  the  animals. 

The  camp  was  directly  in  charge  of  the  Twelve  until  the  Chari- 
ton River  was  reached.  There,  on  March  27,  it  was  divided  into 
companies  containing  from  50  to  60  wagons,  the  companies  being 
put  in  charge  of  captains  of  fifties  and  captains  of  tens  —  sug- 
gesting Smith's  "Army  of  Zion."  The  captains  of  fifties  were 
responsible  directly  to  the  High  Council.  There  were  also  a  com- 
missary general,  and,  for  each  fifty,  a  contracting  commissary  "to 
make  righteous  distribution  of  grains  and  provisions."  Strict  order 
was  maintained  by  day  while  the  column  was  in  motion,  and,  when- 
ever there  was  a  halt,  special  care  was  taken  to  secure  the  cattle 
and  the  horses,  while  at  night  watches  were  constantly  maintained. 
The  story  of  the  march  to  the  Missouri  does  not  contain  a  mention 
of  any  hostile  meeting  with  Indians. 

The  company  remained  on  Sugar  Creek  for  about  a  month, 
receiving  constant  accessions  from  across  the  river,  and  on  the  first 
of  March  the  real  westward  movement  began.  The_firsJLnbjective 
point  was  Council  Bluffs,  Iowa,  on  the  Missouri  River,  about  400. 
miles  distant ;  but  on  the  way  several  camps  were  established,  at 
which  some  of  the  emigrants  stopped  to  plant  seeds  and  make 
other  arrangements  for  the  comfort  of  those  who  were  to  follow. 
The  first  of  these  camps  was  located  at  Richardson's  Point  in  Lee 
County,  Iowa,  55  miles  from  Nauvoo;  the  next  on  Chariton  River; 
the  next  on  Locust  Creek ;  the  next,  named  by  them  Garden  Grove, 
on  a  branch  of  Grand  River,  some  150  miles  from  Nauvoo;  and 
another,  which  P.  P.  Pratt  named  Mt.  Pisgah,  on  Grand  River,  138 
miles  east  of  Council  Bluffs.  The  camp  on  the  Missouri  first  made 
was  called  Winter  Quarters,  and  was  situated   just  north  of  the 


J 


364  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

present  site  of  Omaha;  where  the  town  now  called  Florence  is 
located.  It  was  not  until  July  that  the  main  body  arrived  at 
Council  Bluffs. 

The  story  of  this  march  is  a  remarkable  one  in  many  ways. 
Begun  in  winter,  with  the  ground  soon  covered  with  snow,  the 
travellers  encountered  arctic  weather,  with  the  inconveniences  of 
ice,  rain,  and  mud,  until  May.  After  a  snowfall  they  would  have 
to  scrape  the  ground  when  they  had  selected  a  place  for  pitching 
the  tents.  After  a  rain,  or  one  of  the  occasional  thaws,  the  coun- 
try (there  were  no  regular  roads)  would  be  practically  impassable 
for  teams,  and  they  would  have  to  remain  in  camp  until  the  water 
disappeared,  and  the  soil  would  bear  the  weight  of  the  wagons 
after  it  was  corduroyed  with  branches  of  trees.  At  one  time  bad 
roads  caused  a  halt  of  two  or  three  weeks.  Fuel  was  not  always 
abundant,  and  after  a  cold  night  it  was  no  unusual  thing  to  find 
wet  garments  and  bedding  frozen  stiff  in  the  morning.  Here  is 
an  extract  from  Orson  Pratt's  diary :  — 

"  April  9.  The  rain  poured  down  in  torrents.  With  great  exertion  a  part  of 
the  camp  were  enabled  to  get  about  six  miles,  while  others  were  stuck  fast  in  the 
deep  mud.  We  encamped  at  a  point  of  timber  about  sunset,  after  being  drenched 
several  hours  in  rain.  We  were  obliged  to  cut  brush  and  limbs  of  trees,  and 
throw  them  upon  the  ground  in  our  tents,  to  keep  our  beds  from  sinking  in  the 
mud.  Our  animals  were  turned  loose  to  look  out  for  themselves  ;  the  bark  and 
limbs  of  trees  were  their  principal  food."  l 

Game  was  plenty,  —  deer,  wild  turkeys,  and  prairie  hens,  —  but 
while  the  members  of  this  party  were  better  supplied  with  provi- 
sions than  their  followers,  there  was  no  surplus  among  them,  and 
by  April  many  families  were  really  destitute  of  food.  Eliza  Snow 
mentions  that  her  brother  Lorenzo  —  one  of  the  captains  of  tens 
—  had  two  wagons,  a  small  tent,  a  cow,  and  a  scanty  supply  of 
provisions  and  clothing,  and  that  "  he  was  much  better  off  than 
some  of  our  neighbors."  Heber  C.  Kimball,  one  of  the  Twelve, 
says  of  the  situation  of  his  family,  that  he  had  the  ague,  and  his 
wife  was  in  bed  with  it,  with  two  children,  one  a  few  days  old, 
lying  by  her,  and  the  oldest  child  well  enough  to  do  any  house- 
hold work  was  a  b.oy  who  could  scarcely  carry  a  two-quart  pail  of 
water.  Mrs.  F.  D.  Richards,  whose  husband  was  ordered  on  a 
mission  to  England  while  the  camp  was  at  Sugar  Creek,  was  pre- 

1  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XI,  p.  370. 


FROM   THE   MISSISSIPPI   TO   THE   MISSOURI  365 

maturely  confined  in  a  wagon  on  the  way  to  the  Missouri.  The 
babe  died,  as  did  an  older  daughter.  "  Our  situation,"  she  says, 
"was  pitiable;  I  had  not  suitable  food  for  myself  or. my  child; 
the  severe  rain  prevented  our  having  any  fire." 

The  adaptability  of  the  American  pioneer  to  his  circum- 
stances was  shown  during  this  march  in  many  ways.  When  a 
halt  occurred,  a  shoemaker  might  be  seen  looking  for  a  stone  to 
serve  as  a  lap  stone  in  his  repair  work,  or  a  gunsmith  mending  a 
rifle,  or  a  weaver  at  a  wheel  or  loom.  The  women  learned  that 
the  jolting  wagons  would  churn  their  milk,  and,  when  a  halt 
occurred,  it  took  them  but  a  short  time  to  heat  an  oven  hollowed 
out  of  a  hillside,  in  which  to  bake  the  bread  already  "  raised." 
Colonel  Kane  says  that  he  saw  a  piece  of  cloth,  the  wool  for  which 
was  sheared,  dyed,  spun,  and  woven  during  this  march. 

The  leaders  of  the  company  understood  the  people  they  had  in 
charge,  and  they  looked  out  for  their  good  spirits.  Captain  Pitt's 
brass  band  was  included  in  the  equipment,  and  the  camp  was  not 
thoroughly  organized  before,  on  a  clear  evening,  a  dance  —  the 
Mormons  have  always  been  great  dancers  —  was  announced,  and 
the  visiting  Iowans  looked  on  in  amazement,  to  see  these  exiles 
from  comfortable  homes  thus  enjoying  themselves  on  the  open 
prairie,  the  highest  dignitaries  leading  in  Virginia  reels  and 
Copenhagen  jigs. 

John  Taylor,  whose  pictures  of  this  march,  painted  with  a  view 
to  attract  English  emigrants,  were  always  highly  colored,  estimated 
that,  when  he  left  Council  Bluffs  for  England,  in  July,  1846,  there 
were  in  camp  and  on  the  way  15,000  Mormons,  with  3000  wagons, 
30,000  head  of  cattle,  a  great  many  horses  and  mules,  and  a  vast 
number  of  sheep.  Colonel  Kane  says  that,  besides  the  wagons, 
there  was  "  a  large  number  of  nondescript  turnouts,  the  motley 
makeshifts  of  poverty ;  from  the  unsuitable  heavy  cart  that  lum- 
bered on  mysteriously,  with  its  sick  driver  hidden  under  its  coun- 
terpane cover,  to  the  crazy  two-wheeled  trundle,  such  as  our  own 
poor  employ  in  the  conveyance  of  their  slop  barrels,  this  pulled 
along,  it  may  be,  by  a  little  dry-dugged  heifer,  and  rigged  up  only 
to  drag  some  such  light  weight  as  a  baby,  a  sack  of  meal  or  a  pack 
of  clothes  and  bedding."  1 

There  was  no  large  supply  of  cash  to  keep  this  army  and  its 

1  "  The  Mormons,"  a  lecture  by  Colonel  T.  L.  Kane. 


366  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

animals  in  provisions.  Every  member  who  could  contribute  to  -> 
the  commissary  department  by  his  labor  was  expected  to  do  so.^} 
The  settlers  in  the  territory  seem  to  have  been  in  need  of  such 
assistance,  and  were  very  glad  to  pay  for  it  in  grain,  hay,  or  provi- 
sions. A  letter  from  one  of  the  emigrants  to  a  friend  in  England  1 
said  that,  in  every  settlement  they  passed  through,  they  found 
plenty  of  work,  digging  wells  and  cellars,  splitting  rails,  thresh- 
ing, ploughing,  and  clearing  land.  Some  of  the  men  in  the  spring 
were  sent  south  into  Missouri,  not  more  than  forty  miles  from  Far 
West,  in  search  of  employment.  This  they  readily  secured,  no  one 
raising  the  least  objection  to  a  Mormon  who  was  not  to  be  a  perma- 
nent settler.  Others  were  sent  into  that  state  to  exchange  horses, 
feather  beds,  and  other  personal  property  for  cows  and  provisions. 

A  part  of  the  plan  of  operations  provided  for  sending  out 
pioneers  to  select  the  route  and  camping  sites,  to  make  bridges 
where  they  were  necessary,  and  to  open  roads.  The  party  car- 
ried light  boats,  but  a  good  many  bridges  seem  to  have  been  re- 
quired because  of  the  spring  freshets.  It  was  while  resting  after 
a  march  through  prolonged  rain  and  mud,  late  in  April,  that  it  was 
decided  to  establish  the  permanent  camp  called  Garden  Grove. 
Hundreds  of  men  were  at  once  set  to  work,  making  log  houses 
and  fences,  digging  wells,  and  ploughing,  and  soon  hundreds  of 
acres  were  enclosed  and  planted. 

The  progress  made  during  April  was  exasperatingly  slow. 
There  was  soft  mud  during  the  day,  and  rough  ruts  in  the  early 
morning.  Sometimes  camp  would  be  pitched  after  making  only 
a  mile ;  sometimes  they  would  think  they  had  done  well  if  they 
had  made  six.  The  animals,  in  fact,  were  so  thin  from  lack  of 
food  that  they  could  not  do  a  day's  work  even  under  favorable  cir- 
cumstances. The  route,  after  the  middle  of  April,  was  turned  to 
the  north,  and  they  then  travelled  over  a  broken  prairie  country, 
where  the  game  had  been  mostly  killed  off  by  the  Pottawottomi 
Indians,  whose  trails  and  abandoned  camps  were  encountered 
constantly. 

On  May  16,  as  the  two  Pratts  and  others  were  in  advance, 
locating  the  route,  P.  P.  Pratt  discovered  the  site  of  what  was 
called  Mt.  Pisgah  (the  post-office  of  Mt.  Pisgah  of  to-day)  which 
he  thus  describes :  "  Riding  about  three  or  four  miles  over  beauti- 

1  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  VIII,  p.  59. 


FROM   THE   MISSISSIPPI   TO   THE   MISSOURI  367 

ful  prairies,  I  came  suddenly  to  some  round  sloping  hills,  grassy, 
and  crowned  with  beautiful  groves  of  timber,  while  alternate  open 
groves  and  forests  seemed  blended  into  all  the  beauty  and  har- 
mony of  an  English  park.  Beneath  and  beyond,  on  the  west, 
rolled  a  main  branch  of  Grand  River,  with  its  rich  bottoms  of 
alternate  forest  and  prairie."1  As  soon  as  Young  and  the  other 
high  dignitaries  arrived,  it  was  decided  to  form  a  settlement  there, 
and  several  thousand  acres  were  enclosed  for  cultivation,  and  many 
houses  were  built. 

Young  and  most  of  the  first  party  continued  their  westward 
march  through  an  uninhabited  country,  where  they  had  to  make 
their  own  roads.  But  they  met  with  no  opposition  from  Indians, 
and  the  head  of  the  procession  reached  the  banks  of  the  Missouri 
near  Council  Bluffs  in  June,  other  companies  following  in  quite 
rapid  succession. 

The  company  which  was  the  last  to  leave  Nauvoo  (on  Septem- 
ber 17),  driven  out  by  the  Hancock  County  forces,  endured  suffer- 
ings much  greater  than  did  the  early  companies  who  were  conducted 
by  Brigham  Young.  The  latter  comprised  the  well-to-do  of  the 
city  and  all  the  high  officers  of  the  church,  while  the  remnant  left 
behind  was  made  up  of  the  sick  and  those  who  had  not  succeeded 
in  securing  the  necessary  equipment  for  the  journey.  Brayman, 
in  his  second  report  to  Governor  Ford,  said :  — 

"  Those  of  the  Mormons  who  were  wealthy  or  possessed  desirable  real  estate 
in  the  city  had  sold  and  departed  last  spring.  I  am  inclined  to  the  opinion  that 
the  leaders  of  the  church  took  with  them  all  the  movable  wealth  of  their  people 
that  they  could  control,  without  making  proper  provision  for  those  who  remained. 
Consequently  there  was  much  destitution  among  them  ;  much  sickness  and  dis- 
tress. I  traversed  the  city,  and  visited  in  company  with  a  practising  physician 
the  sick,  and  almost  invariably  found  them  destitute,  to  a  painful  extent,  of  the 
comforts  of  life."  2 

It  was  on  the  18th  of  September  that  the  last  of  these  unfor- 
tunates crossed  the  river,  making  640  who  were  then  collected  on 
the  west  bank.  Illness  had  not  been  accepted  by  the  "  posse  "  as 
an  excuse  for  delay.  Thomas  Bullock  says  that  his  family,  con- 
sisting of  a  husband,  wife,  blind  mother-in-law,  four  children,  and 
an  aunt,  "  all  shaking  with  the  ague,"  were  given  twenty  minutes 

1  Pratt's  "Autobiography,"  p.  381. 

2  Warsaw  Signal,  October  20,  1846. 


368  THE   STORY   OF   THE    MORMONS 

in  which  to  get  their  goods  into  two  wagons  and  start.1  The 
west  bank  in  Iowa,  where  the  people  landed,  was  marshy  and 
unhealthy,  and  the  suffering  at  what  was  called  "  Poor  Camp,"  a 
short  distance  above  Montrose,  was  intense.  Severe  storms  were 
frequent,  and  the  best  cover  that  some  of  the  people  could  obtain 
was  a  tent  made  of  a  blanket  or  a  quilt,  or  even  of  brush,  or  the 
shelter  to  be  had  under  the  wagons  of  those  who  were  fortunate 
enough  to  be  thus  equipped.  Bullock  thus  describes  one  night's 
experience :  "  On  Monday,  September  23,  while  in  my  wagon  on 
the  slough  opposite  Nauvoo,  a  most  tremendous  thunderstorm 
passed  over,  which  drenched  everything  we  had.  Not  a  dry  thing 
left  us  —  the  bed  a  pool  of  water,  my  wife  and  mother-in-law  lading 
it  out  by  basinfuls,  and  I  in  a  burning  fever  and  insensible,  with  all 
my  hair  shorn  off  to  cure  me  of  my  disease.  A  poor  woman  stood 
among  the  bushes,  wrapping  her  cloak  around  her  three  little 
orphan  children,  to  shield  them  from  the  storm  as  well  as  she 
could."  The  supply  of  food,  too,  was  limited,  their  flour  being 
wheat  ground  in  hand  mills,  and  even  this  at  times  failing ;  then 
roasted  corn  was  substituted,  the  grain  being  mixed  by  some  with 
slippery  elm  bark  to  eke  it  out.2  The  people  of  Hancock  County 
contributed  something  in  the  way  of  clothing  and  provisions  and 
a  little  money  in  aid  of  these  sufferers,  and  the  trustees  of  the 
church  who  were  left  in  Nauvoo  to  sell  property  gave  what  help 
they  could. 

On  October  9  wagons  sent  back  by  the  earlier  emigrants  for 
their  unfortunate  brethren  had  arrived,  and  the  start  for  the  Mis- 
souri began.  Bullock  relates  that,  just  as  they  were  ready  to  set 
out,  a  great  flight  of  quails  settled  in  the  camp,  running  around  the 
wagons  so  near  that  they  could  be  knocked  over  with  sticks,  and 
the  children  caught  some  alive.  One  bird  lighted  upon  their  tea 
board,  in  the  midst  of  the  cups,  while  they  were  at  breakfast.  It 
was  estimated  that  five  hundred  of  the  birds  were  flying  about  the 
camp  that  day,  but  when  one  hundred  had  been  killed  or  caught, 
the  captain  forbade  the  killing  of  any  more,  "  as  it  was  a  direct 
manifestation  and  visitation  by  the  Lord."  Young  closes  his 
account  of  this  incident  with  the  words,  "  Tell  this  to  the  nations 
of  the  earth !     Tell  it  to  the  kings  and  nobles  and  great  ones." 

1  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  X,  p.  28. 

2  Bancroft's  "  History  of  Utah,"  p.  233. 


FROM   THE   MISSISSIPPI   TO   THE   MISSOURI  369 

Wells,  in  his  manuscript,  "Utah  Notes"  (quoted  by  H.  H.  Ban- 
croft), says :  "  This  phenomenon  extended  some  thirty  or  forty 
miles  along  the  river,  and  was  generally  observed.  The  quail  in 
immense  quantities  had  attempted  to  cross  the  river,  but  this 
being  beyond  their  strength,  had  dropped  into  the  river  boats  or 
on  the  banks."1 

The  westward  march  of  these  refugees  was  marked  by  more 
hardships  than  that  of  the  earlier  bodies,  because  they  were  in 
bad  physical  condition  and  were  in  no  sense  properly  equipped. 
Council  Bluffs  was  not  reached  till  November  27. 

The  division  of  the  emigrants  and  their  progress  was  thus 
noted  in  an  interview,  printed  in  the  Nauvoo  Eagle  of  July  10, 
with  a  person  who  had  left  Council  Bluffs  on  June  26,  coming  East. 
The  advance  company,  including  the  Twelve,  with  a  train  of  1000 
wagons,  was  then  encamped  on  the  east  bank  of  the  Missouri,  the 
men  being  busy  building  boats.  The  second  company,  3000  strong, 
were  at  Mt.  Pisgah,  recruiting  their  cattle  for  a  new  start.  The 
third  company  had  halted  at  Garden  Grove.  Between  Garden 
Grove  and  the  Mississippi  River  the  Eagle  s  informant  counted 
more  than  1000  wagons  on  their  way  west.  He  estimated  the  total 
number  of  teams  engaged  in  this  movement  at  about  3700,  and  the 
number  of  persons  on  the  road  at  12,000.  The  Eagle  added: 
"  From  2000  to  3000  have  disappeared  from  Nauvoo  in  various 
directions,  and  about  800  or  less  still  remain  in  Illinois.  This  com- 
prises the  entire  Mormon  population  that  once  flourished  in  Han- 
cock County.  In  their  palmy  days  they  probably  numbered  15,000 
or  16,000." 

The  camp  that  had  been  formed  at  Mt.  Pisgah  suffered 
severely  from  the  start.  Provisions  were  scarce,  and  a  number 
of  families  were  dependent  for  food  on  neighbors  who  had  little 
enough  for  themselves.  Fodder  for  the  cattle  gave  out,  too,  and 
in  the  early  spring  the  only  substitute  was  buds  and  twigs  of  trees. 
Snow  notes  as  a  calamity  the  death  of  his  milch  cow,  which  had 
been  driven  all  the  way  from  Ohio.  Along  with  their  destitution 
came  sickness,  and  at  times  during  the  following  winter  it  seemed 
as  if  there  were  not  enough  of  the  well  to  supply  the  needed  nurses. 
So  many  deaths  occurred  during  that  autumn  and  winter  that  a 
funeral  came  to  be  conducted  with  little  ceremony,  and  even  the 

1  Bancroft's  "  History  of  Utah,"  p.  234,  note. 
2B 


370  THE    STORY    OF   THE    MORMONS 

customary  burial  clothes  could  not  be  provided.1  Elder  W.  Hunt- 
ington, the  presiding  officer  of  the  settlement,  was  among  the  early 
victims,  and  Lorenzo  Snow,  the  recent  head  of  the  Mormon 
church,  succeeded  him.  During  Snow's  stay  there  three  of  his 
four  wives  gave  birth  to  children. 

Notwithstanding  these  depressing  circumstances,  the  camp  was 
by  no  means  inactive  during  the  winter.  Those  who  were  well 
were  kept  busy  repairing  wagons,  and  making,  in  a  rude  way,  such 
household  articles  as  were  most  needed  —  chairs,  tubs,  and  baskets. 
Parties  were  sent  out  to  the  settlements  within  reach  to  work, 
accepting  food  and  clothing  as  pay,  and  two  elders  were  selected 
to  visit  the  states  in  search  of  contributions.  These  efforts  were 
so  successful  that  about  $600  was  raised,  and  the  camp  sent  to 
Brigham  Young  at  Council  Bluffs  a  load  of  provisions  as  a  New 
Year's  gift. 

The  usual  religious  meetings  were  kept  up  during  the  winter, 
and  the  utility  of  amusements  in  such  a  settlement  was  not  for- 
gotten. Ingenuity  was  taxed  to  give  variety  to  the  social  enter- 
tainments. Snow  describes  a  "  party  "  that  he  gave  in  his  family 
mansion  —  "a  one-story  edifice  about  fifteen  by  thirty  feet,  con- 
structed of  logs,  with  a  dirt  roof,  a  ground  floor,  and  a  chimney 
made  of  sod."  Many  a  man  compelled  to  house  four  wives  (one  of 
them  with  three  sons  by  a  former  husband)  in  such  a  mansion 
would  have  felt  excused  from  entertaining  company.  But  the 
Snows  did  not.  For  a  carpet  the  floor  was  strewn  with  straw. 
The  logs  of  the  sides  of  the  room  were  concealed  with  sheets. 
Hollowed  turnips  provided  candelabras,  which  were  stuck  around 
the  walls  and  suspended  from  the  roof.  The  company  were  enter- 
tained with  songs,  recitations,  conundrums,  etc.,  and  all  voted  that 
they  had  a  very  jolly  time. 

In  the  larger  camps  the  travellers  were  accustomed  to  make 
what  they  called  "boweries"  —  large  arbors  covered  with  a  frame- 
work of  poles,  and  thatched  with  brush  or  branches.  The  making 
of  such  "  boweries  "  was  continued  by  the  Saints  in  Utah. 

1  "  Biography  of  Lorenzo  Snow,"  p.  90. 


CHAPTER  III 
THE   MORMON    BATTALION 

During  the  halt  of  a  part  of  the  main  body  of  the  Mormons  at 
Mt.  Pisgah,  an  incident  occurred  which  has  been  made  the  sub- 
ject of  a  good  deal  of  literature,  and  has  been  held  up  by  the  Mor- 
mons as  a  proof  both  of  the  severity  of  the  American  government 
toward  them  and  of  their  own  patriotism.  There  is  so  little  ground 
for  either  of  these  claims  that  the  story  of  the  Battalion  should  be 
correctly  told. 

When  hostilities  against  Mexico  began,  early  in  1846,  the  plan 
of  campaign  designed  by  the  United  States  authorities  comprised 
an  invasion  of  Mexico  at  two  points,  by  Generals  Taylor  and  Wool, 
and  a  descent  on  Santa  Fe,  and  thence  a  march  into  California. 
This  march  was  to  be  made  by  General  Stephen  F.  Kearney,  who 
was  to  command  the  volunteers  raised  in  Missouri,  and  the  few 
hundred  regular  troops  then  at  Fort  Leavenworth.  In  gathering 
his  force  General  (then  Colonel)  Kearney  sent  Captain  J.  Allen 
of  the  First  Dragoons  to  the  Mormons  at  Mt.  Pisgah,  not  with  an 
order  of  any  kind,  but  with  a  written  proposition,  dated  June  26, 
1846,  that  he  "would  accept  the  service,  for  twelve  months,  of  four 
or  five  companies  of  Mormon  men"  (each  numbering  from  73  to  " 
109),  to  unite  with  the  Army  of  the  West  at  Santa  Fe,  and  march 
thence  to  California,  where  they  would  be  discharged.  These  vol- 
unteers were  to  have  the  regular  volunteers'  pay  and  allowances, 
and  permission  to  retain  at  their  discharge  the  arms  and  equipments 
with  which  they  would  be  provided,  the  age  limit  to  be  between  eigh- 
teen and  forty-five  years.  The  most  practical  inducement  held 
out  to  the  Mormons  to  enlist  was  thus  explained  :  "  Thus  is  offered 
to  the  Mormon  people  now  —  this  year  —  an  opportunity  of  send- 
ing a  portion  of  their  young  and  intelligent  men  to  the  ultimate 
destination  of  their  whole  people,  and  entirely  at  the  expense  of 

371 


372  THE    STORY    OF   THE    MORMONS 

the  United  States ;  and  this  advance  party  can  thus  pave  the  way 
and  look  out  the  land  for  their  brethren  to  come  after  them." 

There  was  nothing  like  a  "  demand  "  on  the  Mormons  in  this 
invitation,  and  the  advantage  of  accepting  it  was  largely  on  the 
Mormon  side.  If  it  had  not  been,  it  would  have  been  rejected. 
That  the  government  was  in  no  stress  for  volunteers  is  shown  by 
the  fact  that  General  Kearney  reported  to  the  War  Department  in 
the  following  August  that  he  had  more  troops  than  he  needed,  and 
that  he  proposed  to  use  some  of  them  to  reenforce  General  Wool.1 

The  initial  suggestion  about  the  raising  of  these  Mormon  vol- 
unteers came  from  a  Mormon  source.2  In  the  spring  of  1846 
Jesse  C.  Little,  a  Mormon  elder  of  the  Eastern  states,  visited 
Washington  with  letters  of  introduction  from  Governor  Steele  of 
New  Hampshire  and  Colonel  Thomas  L.  Kane  of  Philadelphia, 
hoping  to  secure  from  the  government  a  contract  to  carry  provi- 
sions or  naval  stores  to  the  Pacific  coast,  and  thus  pay  part  of  the 
expense  of  conveying  Mormons  to  California  by  water.  Accord- 
ing to  Little,  this  matter  was  laid  before  the  cabinet,  who  proposed 
that  he  should  visit  the  Mormon  camp  and  raise  1000  picked  men 
to  make  a  dash  for  California  overland,  while  as  many  more  would 
be  sent  around  Cape  Horn  from  the  Eastern  states.  This  big 
scheme,  according  to  Mormon  accounts,  was  upset  by  one  of  the 
hated  Missourians,  Senator  Thomas  H.  Benton,  whose  Macchiavel- 
lian  mind  had  designed  the  plan  of  taking  from  the  Mormons  500 
of  their  best  men  for  the  Battalion,  thus  crippling  them  while  in 
the  Indian  country.  All  this  part  of  their  account  is  utterly 
unworthy  of  belief.  If  500  volunteers  for  the  army  "crippled" 
the  immigrants  where  they  were,  what  would  have  been  their  con- 
dition if  1000  of  their  number  had  been  hurried  on  to  California?3 

Aside  from  the  opportunity  afforded  by  General  Kearney's 
invitation  to  send  a  pioneer  band,  without  expense  to  themselves, 
to  the  Pacific  coast,  the  offer  gave  the  Mormons  great,  and  greatly 
needed,  pecuniary  assistance.     P.  P.  Pratt,  on  his  way  East  to  visit 

1  Chase's  "  History  of  the  Polk  Administration,"  p.  16. 

2  Tullidge's  "  Life  of  Brigham  Young,"  p.  47. 

3  Delegate  Bernhisel,  in  a  letter  to  President  Fillmore  (December  1,  1851),  replying 
to  a  charge  by  Judge  Brocchus  that  the  24th  of  July  orators  had  complained  of  the  con- 
duct of  the  government  in  taking  the  Battalion  from  them  for  service  against  Mexico, 
said,  "The  government  did  not  take  from  us  a  battalion  of  men,"  the  Mormons  furnish- 
ing them  in  response  to  a  call  for  volunteers. 


:- 


THE    MORMON    BATTALION  373 

England  with  Taylor  and  Hyde,  found  the  Battalion  at  Fort  Leav- 
enworth, and  was  sent  back  to  the  camp 1  with  between  $5000  and 
$6000,  a  part  of  the  Battalion's  government  allowance.  This  was 
a  godsend  where  cash  was  so  scarce,  as  it  enabled  the  commissary 
officers  to  make  purchases  in  St.  Louis,  where  prices  were  much 
lower  than  in  western  Iowa.2  John  Taylor,  in  a  letter  to  the  Saints 
in  Great  Britain  on  arriving  there,  quoted  the  acceptance  of  this 
Battalion  as  evidence  that  "  the  President  of  the  United  States  is 
favorably  disposed  to  us,"  and  said  that  their  employment  in  the 
army,  as  there  was  no  prospect  of  any  fighting,  "  amounts  to  the 
same  as  paying  them  for  going  where  they  were  destined  to  go 
without."3 

The  march  of  the  federal  force  that  went  from  Santa  Fe  (where 
the  Mormon  Battalion  arrived  in  October)  to  California  was  a  nota- 
ble one,  over  unexplored  deserts,  where  food  was  scarce  and  water 
for  long  distances  unobtainable.  Arriving  at  the  junction  of  the 
Gila  and  Colorado  rivers  on  December  26,  they  received  there  an 
order  to  march  to  San  Diego,  California,  and  arrived  there  on  Janu- 
ary 29,  after  a  march  of  over  two  thousand  miles. 

The  war  in  California  was  over  at  that  date,  but  the  Battalion  did 
garrison  duty  at  San  Luis  Rey,  and  then  at  Los  Angeles.  Vari- 
ous propositions  for  their  reenlistment  were  made  to  them,  but 
their  church  officers  opposed  this,  and  were  obeyed  except  in  some 
individual  instances.  About  1 50  of  those  who  set  out  from  Santa  Fe 
were  sent  back  invalided  before  California  was  reached,  and  the 
number  mustered  out  was  only  about  240.  These  at  once  started 
eastward,  but,  owing  to  news  received  concerning  the  hardships  of 
the  first  Mormons  who  arrived  in  Salt  Lake  Valley,  many  of  them 
decided  to  remain  in  California,  and  a  number  were  hired  by  Sutter, 
on  whose  mill-race  the  first  discovery  of  gold  in  that  state  was  made. 
Those  who  kept  on  reached  Salt  Lake  Valley  on  October  16,  1847. 
Thirty-two  of  their  number  continued  their  march  to  Winter  Quar- 
ters on  the  Missouri,  where  they  arrived  on  December  18. 

Mormon  historians  not  only  present  the  raising  of  the  Battalion 
as  a  proof  of  patriotism,  but  ascribe  to  the  members  of  that  force 

1  "  Unexpected  as  this  visit  was,  a  member  of  my  family  had  been  warned  in  a 
dream,  and  had  predicted  my  arrival  and  the  day."  —  Pratt,  "Autobiography,"  p.  384. 

2  "  History  of  Brigham  Young,"  Ms.,  1846,  p.  150. 
8  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  VIII,  p.  117. 


374  THE    STORY    OF   THE   MORMONS 

the  credit  of  securing  California  to  the  United  States,  and  the  dis- 
covery of  gold.1 

When  Elder  Little  left  Washington  for  the  West  with  despatches 
for  General  Kearney  concerning  the  Mormon  enlistments,  he  was 
accompanied  by  Colonel  Thomas  L.  Kane,  a  brother  of  the  famous 
Arctic  explorer.  On  his  way  West  Colonel  Kane  visited  Nauvoo 
while  the  Hancock  County  posse  were  in  possession  of  it,  saw  the 
expelled  Mormons  in  their  camp  across  the  river,  followed  the 
trail  of  those  who  had  reached  the  Missouri,  and  lay  ill  among 
them  in  the  unhealthy  Missouri  bottom  in  1847.  From  that  time 
Colonel  Kane  became  one  of  the  most  useful  agents  of  the  Mormon 
church  in  the  Eastern  states,  and,  as  we  shall  see,  performed  for 
them  services  which  only  a  man  devoted  to  the  church,  but  not 
openly  a  member  of  it,  could  have  accomplished. 

It  was  stated  at  the  time  that  Colonel  Kane  was  baptized  by 
Young  at  Council  Bluffs  in  1847.  His  future  course  gives  every 
reason  to  accept  the  correctness  of  this  view.  He  served  the  Mor- 
mons in  the  East  as  a  Jesuit  would  have  served  his  order  in  earlier 
days  in  France  or  Spain.  He  bore  false  witness  in  regard  to 
polygamy  and  to  the  character  of  men  high  in  the  church  as 
unblushingly  as  a  Brigham  Young  or  a  Kimball  could  have  done. 
His  lecture  before  the  Historical  Society  of  Pennsylvania  in  1850 
was  highly  colored  where  it  stated  facts,  and  so  inaccurate  in  other 
parts  that  it  is  of  little  use  to  the  historian.  A  Mormon  writer  who 
denied  that  Kane  was  a  member  of  the  church  offered  as  proof  of 
this  the  statement  that,  had  Kane  been  a  Mormon,  Young  would 
have  commanded  him  instead  of  treating  him  with  so  much  respect. 
But  Young  was  not  a  fool,  and  was  quite  capable  of  appreciating 
the  value  of  a  secret  agent  at  the  federal  capital. 

1  "The  Mormons  have  always  been  disposed  to  overestimate  the  value  of  their  ser- 
vices during  this  period,  attaching  undue  importance  to  the  current  rumors  of  intending 
revolt  on  the  part  of  the  Californians,  and  of  the  approach  of  Mexican  troops  to  recon- 
quer the  province.  They  also  claim  the  credit  of  having  enabled  Kearney  to  sustain  his 
authority  against  the  revolutionary  pretensions  of  Fremont.  The  merit  of  this  claim 
will  be  apparent  to  the  readers  of  preceding  chapters."  —  Bancrofi-,  "  History  of  Cali- 
fornia," Vol.  V,  p.  487. 


CHAPTER   IV 

THE  CAMPS  ON  THE  MISSOURI 

Mormon  accounts  of  the  westward  movement  from  Nauvoo 
represent  that  the  delay  which  occurred  when  they  reached  the 
Missouri  River  was  an  interruption  of  their  leaders'  plans,  attribut- 
ing it  to  the  weakening  of  their  force  by  the  enlistment  of  the 
Battalion,  and  the  necessity  of  waiting  for  the  last  Mormons  who^/ 
were  driven  out  of  Nauvoo.  But  after  their  experiences  in  a 
winter  march  from  the  Mississippi,  with  something  like  a  base  of 
supplies  in  reach,  it  is  inconceivable  that  the  Council  would  have 
led  their  followers  farther  into  the  unknown  West  that  same  year, 
when  their  stores  were  so  nearly  exhausted,  and  there  was  no 
region  before  them  in  which  they  could  make  purchases,  even  if 
they  had  the  means  to  do  so. 

When  the  Mormons  arrived  on  the  Missouri  they  met  with  a 
very  friendly  welcome.  They  found  the  land  east  of  the  river 
occupied  by  the  Pottawottomi  Indians,  who  had  recently  been 
removed  from  their  old  home  in  what  is  now  Michigan  and  north- 
ern Illinois  and  Indiana ;  and  the  west  side  occupied  by  the 
Omahas,  who  had  once  "considered  all  created  things  as  made 
for  their  peculiar  use  and  benefit,"  but  whom  the  smallpox  and 
the  Sioux  had  many  years  before  reduced  to  a  miserable  remnant. 

The  Mormons  won  the  heart  of  the  Pottawottomies  by  giving 
them  a  concert  at  their  agent's  residence.  A  council  followed,  at 
which  their  chief,  Pied  Riche,  surnamed  Le  Clerc,  made  an  address, 
giving  the  Mormons  permission  to  cut  wood,  make  improvements, 
and  live  where  they  pleased  on  their  lands. 

The  principal  camp  on  the  Missouri,  known  as  Winter  Quar- 
ters, was  on  the  west  bank,  on  what  is  now  the  site  of  Florence, 
Nebraska.  A  council  was  held  with  the  Omaha  chiefs  in  the  latter 
part  of  August,  and  Big  Elk,  in  reply  to  an  address  by  Brigham 

375 


376  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

Young,  recited  their  sufferings  at  the  hands  of  the  Sioux,  and  told 
the  whites  that  they  could  stay  there  for  two  years  and  have  the 
use  of  firewood  and  timber,  and  that  the  young  men  of  the  Ind- 
ians would  watch  their  cattle  and  warn  them  of  any  danger.  In 
return,  the  Indians  asked  for  the  use  of  teams  to  draw  in  their 
harvest,  for  assistance  in  housebuilding,  ploughing,  and  black- 
smithing,  and  that  a  traffic  in  goods  be  established.  An  agree- 
ment to  this  effect  was  put  in  writing. 

The  arrival  of  party  after  party  of  Mormons  made  an  unusually 
busy  scene  on  the  river  banks.  On  the  east  side  every  hill  that 
helped  to  make  up  the  Council  Bluffs  was  occupied  with  tents  and 
wagons,  while  the  bottom  was  crowded  with  cattle  and  vehicles 
on  the  way  to  the  west  side.  Kane  counted  four  thousand  head 
of  cattle  from  a  single  elevation,  and  says  that  the  Mormon  herd 
numbered  thirty  thousand.  Along  the  banks  of  the  river  and 
creeks  the  women  were  doing  their  family  washing,  while  men 
were  making  boats  and  superintending  in  every  way  the  passage 
of  the  river  by  some,  and  the  preparations  for  a  stay  on  the  east 
side  by  others  —  building  huts,  breaking  the  sod  for  grain,  etc. 
The  Pottawottomies  had  cut  an  approach  to  the  river  opposite  a 
trading  post  of  the  American  Fur  Company,  and  established  a 
ferry  there,  and  they  now  did  a  big  business  carrying  over,  in  their 
flat-bottom  boats,  families  and  their  wagons,  and  the  cows  and 
sheep.  As  for  the  oxen,  they  were  forced  to  swim,  and  great  times 
the  boys  had,  driving  them  to  the  bank,  compelling  them  to  take 
the  initial  plunge,  and  then  guiding  them  across  by  taking  the 
lead  astride  some  animal's  back. 

Sickness  in  the  camps  began  almost  as  soon  as  they  were 
formed.  "  Misery  Bottom,"  as  it  was  then  called,  received  the  rich 
deposit  brought  down  by  the  river  in  the  spring,  and,  when  the  river 
retired  into  its  banks,  became  a  series  of  mud  flats,  described  as 
"  mere  quagmires  of  black  dirt,  stretching  along  for  miles,  unvaried 
except  by  the  limbs  of  half-buried  carrion,  tree  trunks,  or  by 
occasional  yellow  pools  of  what  the  children  called  frog's  spawn ; 
all  together  steaming  up  vapors  redolent  of  the  savor  of  death." 
In  the  previous  year — not  an  unusually  bad  one  —  one-ninth  of 
the  Indian  population  on  these  flats  had  died  in  two  months.  The 
Mormons  suffered  not  only  from  the  malaria  of  the  river  bottom, 
but  from  the  breaking  up  of  many  acres  of  the  soil  in  their  farm- 
ing operations. 


THE   CAMPS   ON    THE   MISSOURI  377 

The  illness  was  diagnosed  as  the  usual  malarial  fever,  accom- 
panied in  many  cases  with  scorbutic  symptoms,  which  they  called 
"  black  canker,"  due  to  a  lack  of  vegetable  food.  In  and  around 
Winter  Quarters  there  were  more  than  600  burials  before  cold 
weather  set  in,  and  334  out  of  a  population  of  3483  were  reported 
on  the  sick  list  as  late  as  December.  The  Papillon  Camp,  on  the 
Little  Butterfly  River,  was  a  deadly  site.  Kane,  who  had  the 
fever  there,  in  passing  by  the  place  earlier  in  the  season  had 
opened  an  Indian  mound,  leaving  a  deep  trench  through  it.  "My 
first  airing,"  he  says,  "upon  my  convalescence,  took  me  to  the 
mound,  which,  probably  to  save  digging,  had  been  readapted  to 
its  original  purpose.  In  this  brief  interval  they  had  filled  the 
trench  with  bodies,  and  furrowed  the  ground  with  graves  around 
it,  like  the  ploughing  of  a  field." 

But  amid  such  affliction,  in  which  cows  went  unmilked  and 
corpses  became  loathsome  before  men  could  be  found  to  bury  them, 
preparations  continued  at  all  the  camps  for  the  winter's  stay  and 
next  year's  supplies.  Brigham  Young,  writing  from  Winter  Quar- 
ters on  January  6,  1847,  to  the  elders  in  England,  said  :  "  We  have 
upward  of  seven  hundred  houses  in  our  miniature  city,  composed 
mostly  of  logs  in  the  body,  covered  with  puncheon,  straw,  and  dirt, 
which  are  warm  and  wholesome ;  a  few  are  composed  of  turf,  wil- 
lows, straw,  etc.,  which  are  comfortable  this  winter,  but  will  not 
endure  the  thaws,  rain,  and  sunshine  of  spring."  *  This  city  was 
divided  into  twenty-two  wards,  each  presided  over  by  a  Bishop. 
The  principal  buildings  were  the  Council  House,  thirty-two  by 
twenty-four  feet,  and  Dr.  Richard's  house,  called  the  Octagon, 
and  described  as  resembling  the  heap  of  earth  piled  up  over  pota- 
toes to  shield  them  from  frost.  In  this  Octagon  the  High  Council 
held  most  of  their  meetings.  A  great  necessity  was  a  flouring  mill, 
and  accordingly  they  sent  to  St.  Louis  for  the  stones  and  gearing, 
and,  under  Brigham  Young's  personal  direction  as  a  carpenter,  the 
mill  was  built  and  made  ready  for  use  in  January.  The  money  sent 
back  by  the  Battalion  was  expended  in  St.  Louis  for  sugar  and  other 
needed  articles. 

As  usual  with  the  pictures  sent  to  Europe,  Young's  description 
of  the  comfort  of  the  winter  camp  was  exaggerated.  P.  P.  Pratt, 
who  arrived  at  Winter  Quarters  from  his  mission  to  Europe  on 
April  8,  1847,  says  :  — 

1  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  IX,  p.  97. 


378  THE   STORY   OF   THE  MORMONS 

"  I  found  my  family  all  alive,  and  dwelling  in  a  log  cabin.  They  had,  however, 
suffered  much  from  cold,  hunger,  and  sickness.  They  had  oftentimes  lived  for 
several  days  on  a  little  corn  meal,  ground  in  a  hand  mill,  with  no  other  food. 
One  of  the  family  was  then  lying  very  sick  with  the  scurvy  —  a  disease  which  had 
been  very  prevalent  in  camp  during  the  winter,  and  of  which  many  had  died.  I 
found,  on  inquiry,  that  the  winter  had  been  very  severe,  the  snow  deep,  and  con- 
sequently that  all  my  four  horses  were  lost,  and  I  afterward  ascertained  that  out 
of  twelve  cows,  I  had  but  seven  left,  and,  out  of  some  twelve  or  fourteen  oxen, 
only  four  or  five  were  saved." 

If  this  was  the  plight  in  which  the  spring  found  the  family  of 
one  of  the  Twelve,  imagination  can  picture  the  suffering  of  the 
hundreds  who  had  arrived  with  less  provision  against  the  rigors  of 
such  a  winter  climate. 


CHAPTER    V 
THE   PIONEER   TRIP  ACROSS   THE  PLAINS 

During  the  winter  of  1846- 1847  preparations  were  under  way 
to  send  an  organization  of  pioneers  across  the  plains  and  beyond 
the  Rocky  Mountains,  to  select  a  new  dwelling-place  for  the  Saints. 
The  only  "  revelation  "  to  Brigham  Young  found  in  the  "  Book  of 
Doctrine  and  Covenants  "  is  a  direction  about  the  organization  and 
mission  of  this  expedition.  It  was  dated  January  14,  1847,  and  it 
directed  the  organization  of  the  pioneers  into  companies,  with  cap- 
tains of  hundreds,  of  fifties,  and  of  tens,  and  a  president  and  two 
counsellors  at  their  head,  under  charge  of  the  Twelve.  Each  com- 
pany was  to  provide  its  own  equipment,  and  to  take  seeds  and 
farming  implements.  "  Let  every  man,"  it  commanded,  "  use  all 
his  influence  and  property  to  remove  this  people  to  the  place 
where  the  Lord  shall  locate  a  Stake  of  Zion."  The  power  of  the 
head  of  the  church  was  guarded  by  a  threat  that  "  if  any  man 
shall  seek  to  build  up  himself  he  shall  have  no  power,"  and  the 
"  revelation  "  ended,  like  a  rustic's  letter,  with  the  words,  "  So  no 
more  at  present,"  "amen  and  amen"  being  added. 

In  accordance  with  this  command,  on  April  14  J  a  pioneer  band 
of  volunteers  set  out  to  blaze  a  path,  so  to  speak,  across  the  plains 
and  mountains  for  the  main  body  which  was  to  follow. 

It  is  difficult  to-day,  when  this  "  Far  West"  is  in  possession  of 
the  agriculturist,  the  merchant,  and  the  miner,  dotted  with  cities 
and  flourishing  towns,  and  cut  in  all  directions  by  railroads,  which 
have  made  pleasure  routes  for  tourists  of  the  trail  over  which  the 
pioneers  of  half  a  century  ago  toiled  with  difficulty  and  danger,  to 
realize  how  vague  were  the  ideas  of  even  the  best  informed  in  the 
thirties  and  forties  about  the  physical  characteristics  of  that  country 
and  its  future  possibilities.     The  conception  of  the  latter  may  be 

1  Date  given  in  the  General  Epistle  of  December  23,  1847.     Others  say  April  7. 

379 


380  THE    STORY    OF   THE   MORMONS 

best  illustrated  by  quoting  Washington  Irving's  idea,  as  expressed 
in  his  "Astoria,"  written  in  1836:  — 

"  Such  is  the  nature  of  this  immense  wilderness  of  the  far  West ;  which 
apparently  defies  cultivation  and  the  habitation  of  civilized  life.  Some  portion 
of  it,  along  the  rivers,  may  partially  be  subdued  by  agriculture,  others  may  form 
vast  pastural  tracts  like  those  of  the  East ;  but  it  is  to  be  feared  that  a  great  part 
of  it  will  form  a  lawless  interval  between  the  abodes  of  civilized  man,  like  the 
wastes  of  the  ocean  or  the  deserts  of  Arabia,  and,  like  them,  be  subject  to  the 
depredations  of  the  marauders.  There  may  spring  up  new  and  mongrel  races, 
like  new  formations  in  zoology,  the  amalgamation  of  the  '  debris  '  and  '  abrasions ' 
of  former  races,  civilized  and  savage ;  the  remains  of  broken  and  extinguished 
tribes ;  the  descendants  of  wandering  hunters  and  trappers ;  of  fugitives  from 
the  Spanish-American  frontiers ;  of  adventurers  and  desperadoes  of  every  class 
and  country,  yearly  ejected  from  the  bosom  of  society  into  the  wilderness.  .  .  . 
Some  may  gradually  become  pastoral  hordes,  like  those  rude  and  migratory 
people,  half  shepherd,  half  warrior,  who,  with  their  flocks  and  herds,  roam  the 
plains  of  upper  Asia ;  but  others,  it  is  to  be  apprehended,  will  become  predatory 
bands,  mounted  on  the  fleet  steeds  of  the  prairies,  with  the  open  plains  for  their 
marauding  grounds,  and  the  mountains  for  their  retreats  and  lurking  places. 
There  they  may  resemble  those  great  hordes  of  the  North,  'Gog  and  Magog  with 
their  bands,'  that  haunted  the  gloomy  imaginations  of  the  prophets  —  '  A  great 
company  and  a  mighty  host,  all  riding  upon  horses,  and  warring  upon  those 
nations  which  were  at  rest,  and  dwelt  peaceably,  and  had  gotten  cattle  and 
goods.'" 

"  What  about  the  country  between  the  Missouri  River  and  the 
Pacific,"  asked  a  father  living  near  the  Missouri,  of  his  son  on  his 
return  from  California  across  the  plains  in  185 1.  "Oh,  it's  of  no 
account,"  was  the  reply ;  "  the  soil  is  poor,  sandy,  and  too  dry  to 
produce  anything  but  this  little  short  grass  [afterward  learned 
to  be  so  rich  in  nutriment],  and,  when  it  does  rain,  in  three  hours 
afterward  you  could  not  tell  that  it  had  rained  at  all."  1 

But  while  this  distant  West  was  still  so  unknown  to  the  settled 
parts  of  the  country,  these  Mormon  pioneers  were  by  no  means  the 
first  to  traverse  it,  as  the  records  of  the  journey ings  of  Lewis  and 
Clark,  Ezekiel  Williams,  General  W.  H.  Ashley,  Wilson  Price  Hunt, 
Major  S.  H.  Long,  Captain  W.  Sublette,  Bonneville,  Fremont,  and 
others  show. 

The  pioneer  band  of  the  Mormons  consisted  of  143  men,  three 

I  women  (wives  of  Brigham  and  Lorenzo  Young  and  H.  C.  Kimball), 

and  two  children.   They  took  with  them  seventy-three  wagons.   Their 

1  Nebraska  Historical  Society  papers. 


THE   PIONEER   TRIP   ACROSS   THE   PLAINS  38 1 

chief  officers  were  Brigham  Young,  Lieutenant  General ;  Stephen 
Markham,  Colonel;  John  Pack,  First  Major;  Shadrack  Roundy, 
Second  Major,  two  captains  of  hundreds,  and  fourteen  captains  of 
companies.  The  order  of  march  was  intelligently  arranged,  with  a 
view  to  the  probability  of  meeting  Indians  who,  if  not  dangerous  to 
life,  had  little  regard  for  personal  property.  The  Indians  of  the 
Platte  region  were  notorious  thieves,  but  had  not  the  reputation  as 
warriors  of  their  more  northern  neighbors.  The  regulations  re- 
quired that  each  private  should  walk  constantly  beside  his  wagon, 
leaving  it  only  by  his  officer's  command.  In  order  to  make  as 
compact  a  force  as  possible,  two  wagons  were  to  move  abreast 
whenever  this  could  be  done.  Every  man  was  to  keep  his  weapons 
loaded,  and  special  care  was  insisted  upon  that  the  caps,  flints,  and 
locks  should  be  in  good  condition.  They  had  with  them  one  small 
cannon  mounted  on  wheels. 

The  bugle  for  rising  sounded  at  5  a.m.,  and  two  hours  were 
allowed  for  breakfast  and  prayers.  At  night  each  man  was  to 
retire  into  his  wagon  for  prayer  at  8.30  o'clock,  and  for  the  night's 
rest  at  9.  The  night  camp  was  formed  by  drawing  up  the  wagons 
in  a  semicircle,  with  the  river  in  the  rear,  if  they  camped  near  its 
bank,  or  otherwise  with  the  wagons  in  a  circle,  a  fore  wheel  of  one 
touching  the  hind  wheel  of  the  next.  In  this  way  an  effective 
corral  for  the  animals  was  provided  within. 

At  the  head  of  Grand  Island,  on  April  30,  they  had  their  first 
sight  of  buffaloes.  A  hunting  party  was  organized  at  once,  and  a 
herd  of  sixty-five  of  the  animals  was  pursued  for  several  miles  in 
full  view  of  the  camp  (when  game  and  hunters  were  not  hidden  by 
the  dust),  and  so  successfully  that  eleven  buffaloes  were  killed. 

The  first  alarm  of  Indians  occurred  on  May  4,  when  scouts 
reported  a  band  of  about  four  hundred  a  few  miles  ahead.  The 
wagons  were  at  once  formed  five  abreast,  the  cannon  was  fired  as 
a  means  of  alarm,  and  the  company  advanced  in  close  formation. 
The  Indians  did  not  attack  them,  but  they  set  fire  to  the  prairie, 
and  this  caused  a  halt.  A  change  of  wind  the  next  morning  and 
an  early  shower  checked  the  flames,  and  the  column  moved  on 
again  at  daybreak.  During  the  next  few  days  the  buffaloes  were 
seen  in  herds  of  hundreds  of  thousands  on  both  sides  of  the  Platte. 
So  numerous  were  they  that  the  company  had  to  stop  at  times  and 
let  gangs  of  the  animals  pass  on  either  side,  and  several  calves 


382  THE    STORY    OF  THE   MORMONS 

were  captured  alive.1  With  or  near  the  buffaloes  were  seen  ante- 
lopes and  wolves. 

At  Grand  Island  the  question  of  their  further  route  was  care- 
fully debated.  There  was  a  well-known  trail  to  Fort  Laramie  on 
the  south  side  of  the  river,  used  by  those  who  set  out  from  Inde- 
pendence, Missouri,  for  Oregon.  Good  pasture  was  assured  on 
that  side,  but  it  was  argued  that,  if  this  party  made  a  new  trail 
along  the  north  side  of  the  river,  the  Mormons  would  have  what 
might  be  considered  a  route  of  their  own,  separated  from  other 
westward  emigrants.  This  view  prevailed,  and  the  course  then 
selected  became  known  in  after  years  as  the  Mormon  Trail  (some- 
times called  the  "Old  Mormon  Road");  the  line  of  the  Union 
Pacific  Railroad  follows  it  for  many  miles. 

Their  decision  caused  them  a  good  deal  of  anxiety  about  forage 
for  their  animals  before  they  reached  Fort  Laramie.  It  had  not 
rained  at  the  latter  point  for  two  years,  and  the  drought,  together 
with  the  vast  herds  of  buffaloes  and  the  Indian  fires,  made  it  for 
days  impossible  to  find  any  pasture  except  in  small  patches.  When 
the  fort  was  reached,  they  had  fed  their  animals  not  only  a  large 
part  of  their  grain,  but  some  of  their  crackers  and  other  bread- 
stuff, and  the  beasts  were  so  weak  that  they  could  scarcely  drag 
the  wagons. 

During  the  previous  winter  the  church  officers  had  procured 
for  their  use  from  England  two  sextants  and  other  instruments 
needed  for  taking  solar  observations,  two  barometers,  thermome- 
ters, etc.,  and  these  were  used  by  Orson  Pratt  daily  to  note  their 
progress.2  Two  of  the  party  also  constructed  a  sort  of  pedometer, 
and,  after  leaving  Fort  Laramie,  a  mile-post  was  set  up  every  ten 
miles,  for  the  guidance  of  those  who  were  to  follow. 

In  the  camp  made  on  May  10  the  first  of  the  Mormon  post- 
offices  on  the  plains  was  established.  Into  a  board  six  inches  wide 
and  eighteen  long,  a  cut  was  made  with  a  saw,  and  in  this  cut 
a  letter  was  placed.  After  nailing  on  cleats  to  retain  the  letter, 
and  addressing  the  board  to  the  officers  of  the  next  company,  the 
board  was  nailed  to  a  fifteen-foot  pole,  which  was  set  firmly  in  the 

1  "The  vast  herds  of  buffalo  were  often  in  our  way,  and  we  were  under  the  neces- 
sity of  sending  out  advance  guards  to  clear  the  track  so  that  our  teams  might  pass."  — 
Erastus  Snow,  "  Address  to  the  Pioneers,"  in  1880. 

2  His  diary  of  the  trip  will  be  found  in  the  Millennial  Star  for  1849-1S50,  full  of 
interesting  details,  but  evidently  edited  for  English  readers. 


THE   PIONEER   TRIP   ACROSS   THE   PLAINS  383 

ground  near  the  trail,  and  left  to  its  fate.  How  successful  this 
attempt  at  communication  proved  is  not  stated,  but  similar  means 
of  communication  were  in  use  during  the  whole  period  of  Mormon 
migration.  Sometimes  a  copy  of  the  camp  journal  was  left  con- 
spicuously in  the  crotch  of  a  tree,  for  the  edification  of  the  next 
camp,  and  scores  of  the  buffaloes'  skulls  that  dotted  the  plains 
were  marked  with  messages  and  set  up  along  the  trail. 

The  weakness  of  the  draught  animals  made  progress  slow  at 
this  time,  and  marches  of  from  4  to  7  miles  a  day  were  recorded. 
The  men  fared  better,  game  being  abundant.  Signs  of  Indians 
were  seen  from  time  to  time,  and  precautions  were  constantly  taken 
to  prevent  a  stampede  of  the  animals;  but  no  open  attack  was 
made.  A  few  Indians  visited  the  camp  on  May  21,  and  gave 
assurances  of  their  friendliness ;  and  on  the  24th  they  had  a  visit  from 
a  party  of  thirty-five  Dakotas  (or  Sioux),  who  tendered  a  written 
letter  of  recommendation  in  French  from  one  of  the  agents  of  the 
American  Fur  Company.  The  Mormons  had  to  grant  their 
request  for  permission  to  camp  with  them  over  night,  which 
meant  also  giving  them  supper  and  breakfast — no  small  demand 
on  their  hospitality  when  the  capacity  of  the  Indian  stomach  is 
understood. 

Little  occurred  during  May  to  vary  the  monotony  of  the  journey. 
On  the  afternoon  of  J.une  1  they  arrived  nearly  opposite  Fort 
Laramie  and  the  ruins  of  old  Fort  Platte,  a  point  522  miles  from 
Winter  Quarters,  and  509  from  Great  Salt  Lake.  The  so-called 
forts  were  in  fact  trading  posts,  established  by  the  fur  companies, 
both  as  points  of  supply  for  their  trappers  and  trading  places  with 
the  Indians  for  peltries.  On  the  evening  of  their  arrival  at  this 
point  they  had  a  visit  from  members  of  a  party  of  Mormons  gath- 
ered principally  from  Mississippi  and  southern  Illinois,  who  had 
passed  the  winter  in  Pueblo,  and  were  waiting  to  join  the  emigrants 
from  Winter  Quarters. 

The  Platte,  usually  a  shallow  stream,  was  at  that  place  108 
yards  wide,  and  too  deep  for  wading.  Brigham  Young  and  some 
others  crossed  over  the  next  morning  in  a  sole-leather  skiff  which 
formed  a  part  of  their  equipment,  and  were  kindly  welcomed  by 
the  commandant.  There  they  learned  that  it  would  be  impractica- 
ble—  or  at  least  very  difficult— to  continue  along  the  north  bank 
of  the  Platte,  and  they  accordingly  hired  a  flatboat  to  ferry  the 


384  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

company  and  their  wagons  across.  The  crossing  began  on  June  3, 
and  on  an  average  four  wagons  were  ferried  over  in  an  hour. 

Advantage  was  taken  of  this  delay  to  set  up  a  bellows  and 
forge,  and  make  needed  repairs  to  the  wagons.  At  the  Fort  the 
Mormons  learned  that  their  old  object  of  hatred  in  Missouri, 
ex-Governor  Boggs,  had  recently  passed  by  with  a  company  of 
emigrants  bound  for  the  Pacific  coast.  Young's  company  came 
across  other  Missourians  on  the  plains ;  but  no  hostilities  ensued, 
the  Missourians  having  no  object  now  to  interfere  with  the  Saints, 
and  the  latter  contenting  themselves  by  noting  in  their  diaries  the 
profanity  and  quarrelsomeness  of  their  old  neighbors. 

The  journey  was  resumed  at  noon  on  June  4,  along  the  Oregon 
trail.  A  small  party  of  the  Mormons  was  sent  on  in  advance  to 
the  spot  where  the  Oregon  trail  crossed  the  Platte,  124  miles  west 
of  Fort  Laramie.  This  crossing  was  generally  made  by  fording, 
but  the  river  was  too  high  for  this,  and  the  sole-leather  boat,  which 
would  carry  from  1500  to  1800  pounds,  was  accordingly  em- 
ployed. The  men  with  this  boat  reached  the  crossing  in  advance 
of  the  first  party  of  Oregon  emigrants  whom  they  had  encountered, 
and  were  employed  by  the  latter  to  ferry  their  goods  across  while 
the  empty  wagons  were  floated.  This  proved  a  happy  enterprise 
for  the  Mormons.  The  drain  on  their  stock  of  grain  and  provisions 
had  by  this  time  so  reduced  their  supply  that  they  looked  forward 
with  no  little  anxiety  to  the  long  march.  The  Oregon  party 
offered  liberal  pay  in  flour,  sugar,  bacon,  and  coffee  for  the  use  of 
the  boat,  and  the  terms  were  gladly  accepted,  although  most  of  the 
persons  served  were  Missourians.  When  the  main  body  of  pio- 
neers started  on  from  that  point,  they  left  ten  men  with  the  boat 
to  maintain  the  ferry  until  the  next  company  from  Winter  Quarters 
should  come  up.1 

The  Mormons  themselves  were  delayed  at  this  crossing  until 
June  19,  making  a  boat  on  which  a  wagon  could  cross  without 
unloading.  During  the  first  few  days  after  leaving  the  North 
Platte  grass  and  water  were  scarce.  On  June  21  they  reached  the 
Sweet  Water,  and,  fording  it,  encamped  within  sight  of  Indepen- 
dence Rock,  near  the  upper  end  of  Devil's  Gate. 

1  "The  Missourians  paid  them  $1.50  for  each  wagon  and  load,  and  paid  it  in  flour 
at  $2.50  ;  yet  flour  was  worth  $10  per  hundredweight,  at  least  at  that  point.  They 
divided  their  earnings  among  the  camp  equally." — TULLIDGE,  "Life  of  Brigham 
Young,"  p.   165. 


CHAPTER   VI 

FROM   THE   ROCKIES   TO   SALT    LAKE   VALLEY 

More  than  one  day's  march  was  now  made  without  finding 
water  or  grass.  Banks  of  snow  were  observed  on  the  near-by 
elevations,  and  overcoats  were  very  comfortable  at  night.  On 
June  26  they  reached  the  South  Pass,  where  the  waters  running 
to  the  Atlantic  and  to  the  Pacific  separate.  They  found,  however, 
no  well-marked  dividing  ridge  —  only,  as  Pratt  described  it,  "  a 
quietly  undulating  plain  or  prairie,  some  fifteen  or  twenty  miles  in 
length  and  breadth,  thickly  covered  with  wild  sage."  There  were 
good  pasture  and  plenty  of  water,  and  they  met  there  a  small  party 
who  were  making  the  journey  from  Oregon  to  the  states  on  horse- 
back. 

All  this  time  the  leaders  of  the  expedition  had  no  definite  view 
of  their  final  stopping-place.  Whenever  Young  was  asked  by  any 
of  his  party,  as  they  trudged  along,  what  locality  they  were  aiming 
for,  his  only  reply  was  that  he  would  recognize  the  site  of  their 
new  home  when  he  saw  it,  and  that  they  would  surely  go  on  as 
the  Lord  would  direct  them.1 

While  they  were  camping  near  South  Pass,  an  incident  occurred 
which  narrowly  escaped  changing  the  plans  of  the  Lord,  if  he  had 
already  selected  Salt  Lake  Valley.  One  of  the  men  whom  the 
company  met  there  was  a  voyager  whose  judgment  about  a  desir- 
able site  for  a  settlement  naturally  seemed  worthy  of  consideration. 
This  was  T.  L.  Smith,  better  known  as  "  Pegleg "  Smith.  He 
had  been  a  companion  of  Jedediah  S.  Smith,  one  of  Ashley's  com- 
pany of  trappers,  who  had  started  from  Great  Salt  Lake  in  August, 
1826,  and  made  his  way  to  San  Gabriel  Mission  in  California,  and 
thence  eastward,  reaching  the  Lake  again  in  the  spring  of  1827. 
"  Pegleg  "  had  a  trading  post  on  Bear  River  above  Soda  Springs  (in 
the  present  Idaho).     He  gave  the  Mormons  a  great  deal  of  infor- 

1  Erastus  Snow's  "Address  to  the  Pioneers,"  1880. 
2C  385 


386  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

mation  about  all  the  valley  which  lay  before  them,  and  to  the  north 
and  south.  "He  earnestly  advised  us,"  says  Erastus  Snow,  "to 
direct  our  course  northwestward  from  Bridger,  and  make  our  way 
into  Cache  Valley ;  and  he  so  far  made  an  impression  upon  the 
camp  that  we  were  induced  to  enter  into  an  engagement  with  him 
to  meet  us  at  a  certain  time  and  place  two  weeks  afterward,  to 
pilot  our  company  into  that  country.  But  for  some  reason,  which 
to  this  day  never  to  my  knowledge  has  been  explained,  he  failed 
to  meet  us;  and  I  have  ever  recognized  his  failure  to  do  so  as  a 
providence  of  an  all-wise  God."  J 

"  Pegleg's  "  reputation  was  as  bad  as  that  of  any  of  those  reck- 
less trappers  of  his  day,  and  perhaps,  if  the  Mormons  had  known 
more  about  him,  they  would  have  given  less  heed  to  his  advice,  and 
counted  less  on  his  keeping  his  engagement. 

With  the  returning  Oregonians  they  also  made  the  acquaint- 
ance of  Major  Harris,  an  old  trapper  and  hunter  in  California  and 
Oregon,  who  gave  them  little  encouragement  about  Salt  Lake  Val- 
ley, as  a  place  of  settlement,  principally  because  of  the  lack  of 
timber.  Two  days  later  they  met  Colonel  James  Bridger,  an 
authority  on  that  part  of  the  country,  whose  "fort"  was  widely 
known.  Young  told  him  that  he  proposed  to  take  a  look  at  Great 
Salt  Lake  Valley  with  a  view  to  its  settlement.  Bridger  affirmed 
that  his  experiments  had  more  than  convinced  him  that  corn  would 
not  grow  in  those  mountains,  and,  when  Young  expressed  doubts 
about  this,  he  offered  to  give  the  Mormon  President  $1000  for 
the  first  ear  raised  in  that  valley.  Next  they  met  a  mountaineer 
named  Goodyear,  who  had  passed  the  last  winter  on  the  site  of  what 
is  now  Ogden,  Utah,  where  he  had  tried  without  success  to  raise 
a  little  grain  and  a  few  vegetables.  He  told  of  severe  cold  in 
winter  and  drought  in  summer.  Irrigation  had  not  suggested 
itself  to  a  man  who  had  a  large  part  of  a  continent  in  which  to 
look  for  a  more  congenial  farm  site. 

Mormons  in  all  later  years  have  said  that  they  were  guided  to 
the  Salt  Lake  Valley  in  fulfilment  of  the  prediction  of  Joseph 
Smith  that  they  would  have  to  flee  to  the  Rocky  Mountains.  But 
in  their  progress  across  the  plains  the  leaders  of  the  pioneers  were 
not  indifferent  to  any  advice  that  came  in  their  way,  and  in  a 
manuscript  "History  of  Brigham  Young"  (1847),  quoted  by  H. 

1  "Address  to  the  Pioneers,"  1880. 


FROM    THE   ROCKIES   TO   SALT   LAKE   VALLEY  387 

H.  Bancroft,  is  the  following  entry,  which  may  indicate  the  first 
suggestion  that  turned  their  attention  from  "  California "  to 
Utah:  "On  the  15th  of  June  met  James  H.  Grieve,  William 
Tucker,  James  Woodrie,  James  Bouvoir,  and  six  other  Frenchmen, 
from  whom  we  learned  that  Mr.  Bridger  was  located  about  three 
hundred  miles  west,  that  the  mountaineers  could  ride  to  Salt 
Lake  from  Fort  Bridger  in  two  days,  and  that  the  Utah  country 
was  beautiful."  x 

The  pioneers  resumed  their  march  on  June  29,  over  a  desolate 
country,  travelling  seventeen  miles  without  finding  grass  or  water, 
until  they  made  their  night  camp  on  the  Big  Sandy.  There  they 
encountered  clouds  of  mosquitoes,  which  made  more  than  one  sub- 
sequent camping-place  very  uncomfortable.  A  march  of  eight 
miles  the  next  morning  brought  them  to  Green  River.  Finding 
this  stream  180  yards  wide,  and  deep  and  swift,  they  stopped  long 
enough  to  make  two  rafts,  on  which  they  successfully  ferried  over 
all  their  wagons  without  unloading  them. 

At  this  point  the  pioneers  met  a  brother  Mormon  who  had  made 
the  journey  to  California  round  the  Horn,  and  had  started  east 
from  there  to  meet  the  overland  travellers.  He  had  an  interesting 
story  to  tell,  the  points  of  which,  in  brief,  were  as  follows :  — 

A  conference  of  Mormons,  held  in  New  York  City  on  Novem- 
ber 12,  1845,  resolved  to  move  in  a  body  to  the  new  home  of  the 
Saints.  This  emigration  scheme  was  placed  in  charge  of  Samuel 
Brannan,  a  native  of  Maine,  and  an  elder  in  the  church,  who  was 
then  editing  the  New  York  Prophet,  and  preaching  there.  Why  so 
important  a  project  was  confided  to  Brannan  seems  a  mystery,  in 
view  of  P.  P.  Pratt's  statement  that,  as  early  as  the  previous  Jan- 
uary, he  had  discovered  that  Brannan  was  among  certain  elders 
who  "  had  been  corrupting  the  Saints  by  introducing  among  them 
all  manner  of  false  doctrines  and  immoral  practices";  he  was 
afterward  disfellowshipped  at  Nauvoo.  By  Pratt's  advice  he  im- 
mediately went  to  that  city,  and  was  restored  to  full  standing  in  the 
church,  as  any  bad  man  always  was  when  he  acknowledged  sub- 
mission to  the  church  authorities.2  Plenty  of  emigrants  offered 
themselves  under  Orson  Pratt's  call,  but  of  the  300  first  applicants 
for  passage  only  about  60  had  money  enough  to  pay  their  expenses, 

1  Bancroft's  "  History  of  Utah,"  p.  257. 
3  Pratt's  "Autobiography,"  p.  374. 


388  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

although  it  was  estimated  that  $75  would  cover  the  outlay  for 
the  trip.  Brannan  chartered  the  Brooklyn,  a.  ship  of  450  tons,  and 
on  February  4,  1846,  she  sailed  with  70  men,  68  women,  and  100 
children.1 

The  voyage  to  San  Francisco  ended  on  July  31.  Ten  deaths 
and  two  births  occurred  during  the  trip,  and  four  of  the  company, 
including  two  elders  and  one  woman,  had  to  be  excommunicated 
"for  their  wicked  and  licentious  conduct."  Three  others  were 
dealt  with  in  the  same  way  as  soon  as  the  company  landed.2  On 
landing  they  found  the  United  States  in  possession  of  the  country, 

which  led  to  Brannan's  reported  remark,  "  There  is  that  d d 

flag  again."  The  men  of  the  party,  some  of  whom  had  not  paid  all 
their  passage  money,  at  once  sought  work,  but  the  company  did 
not  hold  together.  Before  the  end  of  the  year  some  20  more 
"  went  astray,"  in  church  parlance  ;  some  decided  to  remain  on  the 
coast  when  they  learned  that  the  church  was  to  make  Salt  Lake 
Valley  its  headquarters,  and  some  time  later  about  140  reached 
Utah  and  took  up  their  abode  there. 

Brannan  fell  from  grace  and  was  pronounced  by  P.  P.  Pratt 
"  a  corrupt  and  wicked  man."  While  he  was  getting  his  expedi- 
tion in  shape,  he  sent  to  the  church  authorities  in  the  West  a  copy 
of  an  agreement  which  he  said  he  had  made  with  A.  G.  Benson, 
an  alleged  agent  of  Postmaster  General  Kendall.  Benson  was 
represented  as  saying  that,  unless  the  Mormon  leaders  signed  an 
agreement,  to  which  President  Polk  was  a  "  silent  partner,"  by 
which  they  would  "  transfer  to  A.  G.  Benson  and  Co.,  and  to  their 
heirs  and  assigns,  the  odd  number  of  all  the  lands  and  town  lots 
they  may  acquire  in  the  country  where  they  settle,"  the  President 
would  order  them  to  be  dispersed.  This  seems  to  have  been  too 
transparent  a  scheme  to  deceive  Young,  and  the  agreement  was 
not  signed. 

The  march  of  the  pioneers  was  resumed  on  July  3.  That  even- 
ing they  were  told  that  those  who  wished  to  return  eastward  to 
meet  their  families,  who  were  perhaps  five  hundred  miles  back  with 
the  second  company,  could  do  so  ;  but  only  five  of  them  took  advan- 
tage of  this  permission.  The  event  of  Sunday,  July  4,  was  the 
arrival  of  thirteen  members  of  the  Battalion,  who  had  pushed  on  in 

1  Bancroft's  figures,  "  History  of  California,"  Vol.  V,  Chap.  20. 

2  Brannan's  letter,  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  IX,  pp.  306-307. 


FROM   THE   ROCKIES   TO    SALT   LAKE  VALLEY  389 

advance  of  the  main  body  of  those  who  were  on  the  way  from 
Pueblo,  in  order  that  they  might  recover  some  horses  stolen  from 
them,  which  they  were  told  were  at  Bridger's  Fort.  They  said  that 
the  main  body  of  140  were  near  at  hand.  This  company  had  been 
directed  in  their  course  by  instructions  sent  to  them  by  Brigham 
Young  from  a  point  near  Fort  Laramie. 

The  hardships  of  the  trip  had  told  on  the  pioneers,  and  a  num- 
ber of  them  were  now  afflicted  with  what  they  called  "  mountain 
fever."  They  attributed  this  to  the  clouds  of  dust  that  enveloped 
the  column  of  wagons  when  in  motion,  and  to  the  decided  change 
of  temperature  from  day  to  night.  For  six  weeks,  too,  most  of 
them  had  been  without  bread,  living  on  the  meat  provided  by  the 
hunters,  and  saving  the  little  flour  that  was  left  for  the  sick. 

The  route  on  July  5  kept  along  the  right  bank  of  the  Green 
River  for  about  three  miles,  and  then  led  over  the  bluffs  and  across 
a  sandy,  waterless  plain  for  sixteen  miles,  to  the  left  bank  of 
Black's  Fork,  where  they  camped  for  the  night.  The  two  follow- 
ing days  took  them  across  this  Fork  several  times,  but,  although 
fording  was  not  always  comfortable,  the  stream  added  salmon 
trout  to  their  menu.  On  the  7th  the  party  had  a  look  at  Bridger's 
Fort,  of  which  they  had  heard  often.  Orson  Pratt  described  it  at 
the  time  as  consisting  "  of  two  adjoining  log  houses,  dirt  roofs,  and 
a  small  picket  yard  of  logs  set  in  the  ground,  and  about  eight  feet 
high.  The  number  of  men,  squaws,  and  half-breed  children  in 
these  houses  and  lodges  may  be  about  fifty  or  sixty." 

At  the  camp,  half  a  mile  from  the  fort,  that  night  ice  formed. 
The  next  day  the  blacksmiths  were  kept  busy  repairing  wagons 
and  shoeing  horses  in  preparation  for  a  trail  through  the  moun- 
tains. On  the  9th  and  10th  they  passed  over  a  hilly  country, 
camping  on  Beaver  River  on  the  night  of  the  10th. 

The  fever  had  compelled  several  halts  on  account  of  the  con- 
dition of  the  patients,  and  on  the  12th  it  was  found  that  Brigham 
Young  was  too  ill  to  travel.  In  order  not  to  lose  time,  Orson  1 
Pratt,  with  forty-three  men  and  twenty-three  wagons,  was  directed 
to  push  on  into  Salt  Lake  Valley,  leaving  a  trail  that  the  others 
could  follow.  From  the  information  obtainable  at  Fort  Bridger  it 
was  decided  that  the  canon  leading  into  the  valley  would  be  found 
impassable  on  account  of  high  water,  and  that  they  should  direct 
their  course  over  the  mountains. 


390  THE   STORY   OF  THE   MORMONS 

These  explorers  set  out  on  July  14,  travelling  down  Red  Fork,  a 
small  stream  which  ran  through  a  narrow  valley,  whose  sides  in 
places  were  from  eight  hundred  to  twelve  hundred  feet  high,  —  red 
sandstone  walls,  perpendicular  or  overhanging.  This  route  was  a 
rough  one,  requiring  frequent  fordings  of  the  stream,  and  they  did 
well  to  advance  thirteen  miles  that  day.  On  the  1 5th  they  discov- 
ered a  mountain  trail  that  had  been  recommended  to  them,  but  it 
was  a  mere  trace  left  by  wagons  that  had  passed  over  it  a  year 
before.  They  came  now  to  the  roughest  country  they  had  found, 
and  it  became  necessary  to  send  sappers  in  advance  to  open  a  road 
before  the  wagons  could  pass  over  it.  Almost  discouraged,  Pratt 
turned  back  on  foot  the  next  day,  to  see  if  he  could  not  find  a  better 
route ;  but  he  was  soon  convinced  that  only  the  one  before  them 
led  in  the  direction  they  were  to  take.  The  wagons  were  advanced 
only  four  and  three-quarters  miles  that  day,  even  the  creek  bottom 
being  so  covered  with  a  growth  of  willows  that  to  cut  through 
these  was  a  tiresome  labor.  Pratt  and  a  companion,  during  the  day, 
climbed  a  mountain,  which  they  estimated  to  be  about  two  thousand 
feet  high,  but  they  only  saw,  before  and  around  them,  hills  piled  on 
hills  and  mountains  on  mountains,  —  the  outlines  of  the  Wahsatch 
and  Uinta  ranges. 

On  Monday,  the  18th,  Pratt  again  acted  as  advance  explorer, 
and  went  ahead  with  one  companion.  Following  a  ravine  on 
horseback  for  four  miles,  they  then  dismounted  and  climbed  to  an 
elevation  from  which,  in  the  distance,  they  saw  a  level  prairie 
which  they  thought  could  not  be  far  from  Great  Salt  Lake.  The 
whole  party  advanced  only  six  and  a  quarter  miles  that  day  and 
six  the  next. 

One  day  later  Erastus  Snow  came  up  with  them,  and  Pratt 
took  him  along  as  a  companion  in  his  advance  explorations.  They 
discovered  a  point  where  the  travellers  of  the  year  before  had 
ascended  a  hill  to  avoid  a  canon  through  which  a  creek  dashed 
rapidly.  Following  in  their  predecessors'  footsteps,  when  they 
arrived  at  the  top  of  this  hill  there  lay  stretched  out  before  them 
"  a  broad,  open  valley  about  twenty  miles  wide  and  thirty  long,  at 
the  north  end  of  which  the  waters  of  the  Great  Salt  Lake  glis- 
tened in  the  sunbeams."  Snow's  account  of  their  first  view  of  the 
valley  and  lake  is  as  follows  :  — 


FROM   THE   ROCKIES   TO    SALT   LAKE   VALLEY  391 

"  The  thicket  down  the  narrows,  at  the  mouth  of  the  canon,  was  so  dense  that 
we  could  not  penetrate  through  it.  I  crawled  for  some  distance  on  my  hands  and 
knees  through  this  thicket,  until  I  was  compelled  to  return,  admonished  to  by  the 
rattle  of  a  snake  which  lay  coiled  up  under  my  nose,  having  almost  put  my  hand  on 
him ;  but  as  he  gave  me  the  friendly  warning,  I  thanked  him  and  retreated.  We  ! 
raised  on  to  a  high  point  south  of  the  narrows,  where  we  got  a  view  of  the  Great 
Salt  Lake  and  this  valley,  and  each  of  us,  without  saying  a  word  to  the  other, 
instinctively,  as  if  by  inspiration,  raised  our  hats  from  our  heads,  and  then, 
swinging  our  hats,  shouted,  '  Hosannah  to  God  and  the  Lamb  !  J  We  could  see 
the  canes  down  in  the  valley,  on  what  is  now  called  Mill  Creek,  which  looked 
like  inviting  grain,  and  thitherward  we  directed  our  course." 1 

Having  made  an  inspection  of  the  valley,  the  two  explorers 
rejoined  their  party  about  ten  o'clock  that  evening.  The  next 
day,  with  great  labor,  a  road  was  cut  through  the  canon  down 
to  the  valley,  and  on  July  22  Pratt's  entire  company  camped  on 
City  Creek,  below  the  present  Emigration  Street  in  Salt  Lake 
City.  The  next  morning,  after  sending  word  of  their  discovery  to 
Brigham  Young,  the  whole  party  moved  some  two  miles  farther 
north,  and  there,  after  prayer,  the  work  of  putting  in  a  crop  was 
begun.  The  necessity  of  irrigation  was  recognized  at  once.  "  We 
found  the  land  so  dry,"  says  Snow,  "that  to  plough  it  was  impossi- 
ble, and  in  attempting  to  do  so  some  of  the  ploughs  were  broken. 
We  therefore  had  to  distribute  the  water  over  the  land  before  it 
could  be  worked."  When  the  rest  of  the  pioneers  who  had  re- 
mained with  Young  reached  the  valley  the  next  day,  they  found 
about  six  acres  of  potatoes  and  other  vegetables  already  planted. 

While  Apostles  like  Snow  might  have  been  as  transported 
with  delight  over  the  aspect  of  the  valley  as  he  professed  to  be, 
others  of  the  party  could  see  only  a  desolate,  treeless  plain,  with 
sage  brush  supplying  the  vegetation.  To  the  women  especially 
the  outlook  was  most  depressing. 

1  "Address  to  the  Pioneers,"  1880. 


CHAPTER   VII 
THE  FOLLOWING   COMPANIES  — LAST   DAYS   ON  THE  MISSOURI 

When  the  pioneers  set  out  from  the  Missouri,  instructions  were 
left  for  the  organization  of  similar  companies  who  were  to  follow 
their  trail,  without  waiting  to  learn  their  ultimate  destination  or  how 
they  fared  on  the  way.  These  companies  were  in  charge  of  promi- 
nent men  like  Parley  P.  Pratt,  John  Taylor,  Bishop  Hunter,  Daniel 
Spencer,  who  succeeded  Smith  as  mayor  of  Nauvoo,  and  J.  M. 
Grant,  the  first  mayor  of  Salt  Lake  City  after  its  incorporation. 

P.  P.  Pratt  set  out  early  in  June,  as  soon  as  he  could  get  his 
wagons  and  equipment  in  order,  for  Elk  Horn  River,  where  a  sort 
of  rendezvous  was  established,  and  a  rough  ferry  boat  put  in  opera- 
tion. Hence  started  about  the  Fourth  of  July  the  big  company 
which  has  been  called  "  the  first  emigration."  It  consisted,  accord- 
ing to  the  most  trustworthy  statistics,  of  1 553  persons,  equipped  with  t 
566  wagons,  2213  oxen,  124  horses,  887  cows,  358  sheep,  35 
hogs,  and  716  chickens.  Pratt  had  brought  back  from  England 
469  sovereigns,  collected  as  tithing,  which  were  used  in  equipping 
the  first  parties  for  Utah.  This  company  had  at  its  head,  as 
president,  Brigham  Young's  brother  John,  with  P.  P.  Pratt  as  chief 
adviser. 

Nothing  more  serious  interrupted  the  movement  of  these  hun- 
dreds of  emigrants  than  dissatisfaction  with  Pratt,  upsets,  broken 
wagons,  and  the  occasional  straying  of  cattle,  and  all  arrived  in  the 
valley  in  the  latter  part  of  September,  Pratt's  division  on  the  25th. 

The  company  which  started  on  the  return  trip  with  Young  on 
August  26  embraced  those  Apostles  who  had  gone  West  with  him, 
some  others  of  the  pioneers,  and  most  of  the  members  of  the  Bat- 
talion who  had  joined  them,  and  whose  families  were  still  on  the 
banks  of  the  Missouri.  The  eastward  trip  was  made  interesting  by 
the  meetings  with  the  successive  companies  who  were  on  their  way 

392 


THE    FOLLOWING    COMPANIES  393 

to  the  Salt  Lake  Valley.  Early  in  September  some  Indians  stole 
48  of  their  horses,  and  ten  weeks  later  200  Sioux  charged  their 
camp,  but  there  was  no  loss  of  life. 

On  the  19th  of  October  the  party  were  met  by  a  mounted  com- 
pany who  had  left  Winter  Quarters  to  offer  any  aid  that  might  be 
needed,  and  were  escorted  to  that  camp.  They  arrived  there  on 
October  31,  where  they  were  welcomed  by  their  families,  and 
feasted  as  well  as  the  supplies  would  permit. 

The  winter  of  1 847-1 848  was  employed  by  Young  and  his  asso- 
ciates in  completing  the  church  organization,  mapping  out  a  scheme 
of  European  immigration,  and  preparing  for  the  removal  of  the 
remaining  Mormons  to  Salt  Lake  Valley. 

That  winter  was  much  milder  than  its  predecessor,  and  the 
health  of  the  camps  was  improved,  due,  in  part,  to  the  better  physi- 
cal condition  of  their  occupants.  On  the  west  side  of  the  river, 
however,  troubles  had  arisen  with  the  Omahas,  who  complained  to 
the  government  that  the  Mormons  were  killing  off  the  game  and 
depleting  their  lands  of  timber.  The  new-comers  were  accordingly 
directed  to  recross  the  river,  and  it  was  in  this  way  that  the  camp 
near  Council  Bluffs  in  1848  secured  its  principal  population.  In 
Mormon  letters  of  that  date  the  name  Winter  Quarters  is  some- 
times applied  to  the  settlement  east  of  the  river  generally  known 
as  Kanesville. 

The  programme  then  arranged  provided  for  the  removal  in  the 
spring  of  1848  to  Salt  Lake  Valley  of  practically  all  Mormons  who 
remained  on  the  Missouri,  leaving  only  enough  to  look  after  the 
crops  there  and  to  maintain  a  forwarding  point  for  emigrants  from 
Europe  and  the  Eastern  states.  The  legislature  of  Iowa  by  request 
organized  a  county  embracing  the  camps  on  the  east  side  of  the 
river.  There  seems  to  have  been  an  idea  in  the  minds  of  some  of 
the  Mormons  that  they  might  effect  a  permanent  settlement  in 
western  Iowa.  Orson  Pratt,  in  a  general  epistle  to  the  Saints 
in  Europe,  encouraging  emigration,  dated  August  15,  1848,  said,  j 
"  A  great,  extensive,  and  rich  tract  of  country  has  also  been,  by  j 
the  providence  of  God,  put  in  the  possession  of  the  Saints  in  the  I 
western  borders  of  Iowa,"  which  the  Saints  would  have  the  first 
chance  to  purchase,  at  five  shillings  per  acre.  A  letter  from 
G.  A.  Smith  and  E.  T.  Benson  to  O.  Pratt,  dated  December  20  in 
that  year,  told  of  the  formation  of  a  company  of  860  members  to 


394 


THE    STORY   OF   THE    MORMONS 


enclose  an  additional  tract  of  1 1,000  acres,  in  shares  of  from  5  to  80 
acres,  and  of  the  laying  out  of  two  new  cities,  ten  miles  north  and 
south.  Orson  Hyde  set  up  a  printing-press  there,  and  for  some 
time  published  the  Frontier  Guardian.  But  wiser  counsel  pre- 
vailed, and  by  1853  most  of  the  emigrants  from  Nauvoo  had  passed 
on  to  Utah,1  and  Linforth  found  Kanesville  in  1853  "very  dirty 
and  unhealthy,"  and  full  of  gamblers,  lawyers,  and  dealers  in 
"bargains,"  the  latter  made  up  principally  of  the  outfits  of  dis- 
couraged immigrants  who  had  given  up  the  trip  at  that  point. 

Young  himself  took  charge  of  the  largest  body  that  was  to 
cross  the  plains  in  1848.  The  preparations  were  well  advanced 
by  the  first  of  May,  and  on  the  24th  he  set  out  for  Elk  Horn  (com- 
monly called  "  The  Horn  ")  where  the  organization  of  the  column 
was  to  be  made.  The  travellers  were  divided  into  two  large  com- 
panies, the  first  four  "hundreds"  comprising  1229  persons  and 
397  wagons ;  the  second  section,  led  by  H.  C.  Kimball,  662  persons 
and  226  wagons ;  and  the  third,  under  Elders  W.  Richards  and 
A.  Lyman,  about  300  wagons.  A  census  of  the  first  two  com- 
panies, made  by  the  clerk  of  the  camp,  showed  that  their  equipment 
embraced  the  following  items  :  horses,  131;  mules,  44;  oxen,  2012; 
cows  and  other  cattle,  1 3 17;  sheep,  654  ;  pigs,  237  ;  chickens,  904 ; 
cats,  54;  dogs,  134;  goats,  3;  geese,  10;  ducks,  5;  hives  of  bees, 
5  ;  doves,  1 1  ;  and  one  squirrel.2 

The  expense  of  fitting  out  these  companies  was  necessarily 
large,  and  the  heads  of  the  church  left  at  Kanesville  a  debt 
amounting  to  $3600,  "without  any  means  being  provided  for  its 
payment."  3 

President  Young's  company  began  its  actual  westward  march 
on  June  5,  and  the  last  detachment  got  away  about  the  25th.  They 
reached  the  site  of  Salt  Lake  City  in  September.  The  incidents 
of  the  trip  were  not  more  interesting  than  those  of  the  previous 
year,  and  only  four  deaths  occurred  on  the  way. 

1  On  September  21,  185 1,  the  First  Presidency  sent  a  letter  to  the  Saints  who  were 
still  in  Iowa,  directing  them  all  to  come  to  Salt  Lake  Valley,  and  saying:  "  What  are  you 
waiting  for?  Have  you  any  good  excuse  for  not  coming?  No.  You  have  all  of  you 
unitedly  a  far  better  chance  than  we  had  when  we  started  as  pioneers  to  find  this  place." 
—  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XIV,  p.  29. 

3  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  X,  p.  319.  3  Ibid.,  Vol.  XI,  p.  14. 


BOOK   VI 

IN  UTAH 

CHAPTER   I 
THE  FOUNDING   OF   SALT   LAKE  CITY 

The  first  white  men  to  enter  what  is  now  Utah  were  a  part  of 
the  force  of  Coronado,  under  Captain  Garcia  Lopez  de  Cardenas, 
if  the  reader  of  the  evidence  decides  that  their  journey  from  Zuni 
took  them,  in  1 540,  across  the  present  Utah  border  line.1  A  more 
definite  account  has  been  preserved  of  a  second  exploration,  which 
left  Santa  Fe  in  1776,  led  by  two  priests,  Dominguez  and  Escalante, 
in  search  of  a  route  to  the  California  coast.  A  two  months'  march 
brought  them  to  a  lake,  called  Timpanogos  by  the  natives  —  now 
Utah  Lake  on  the  map — where  they  were  told  of  another  lake, 
many  leagues  in  extent,  whose  waters  were  so  salt  that  they  made 
the  body  itch  when  wet  with  them  ;  but  they  turned  to  the  south- 
west without  visiting  it.  Lahontan's  report  of  the  discovery  of  a 
body  of  bad-tasting  water  on  the  western  side  of  the  continent  in 
1689  is  not  accepted  as  more  than  a  part  of  an  imaginary  narra- 
tive. S.  A.  Ruddock  asserted  that,  in  1 821,  he  with  a  trading 
party  made  a  journey  from  Council  Bluffs  to  Oregon  by  way  of 
Santa  Fe  and  Great  Salt  Lake.2 

Bancroft  mentions  this  claim  "  for  what  it  is  worth,"  but  awards 
the  honor  of  the  discovery  of  the  lake,  as  the  earliest  authenticated, 
to  James  Bridger,  the  noted  frontiersman  who,  some  twelve  years 
later,  built  his  well-known  trading  fort  on  Green  River.  Bridger, 
with  a  party  of  trappers  who  had  journeyed  west  from  the  Missouri 

1  See  Bancroft's  "History  of  Utah,"  Chap.  i. 

2  House  Report,  No.  213,  1st  Session,  19th  Congress. 

395 


396  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

with  Henry  and  Ashley  in  1824,  got  into  a  discussion  that  winter 
with  his  fellows,  while  they  were  camped  on  Bear  River,  about  the 
course  of  that  stream,  and,  to  decide  a  bet,  Bridger  followed  it 
southward  until  he  came  to  Great  Salt  Lake.  In  the  following 
spring  four  of  the  party  explored  the  lake  in  boats  made  of  skins, 
hoping  to  find  beavers,  and  they,  it  is  believed,  were  the  first  white 
men  to  float  upon  its  waters.  Fremont  saw  the  lake  from  the 
summit  of  a  butte  on  September  6,  1843.  "  It  was,"  he  says,  "  one 
of  the  great  objects  of  the  exploration,  and,  as  we  looked  eagerly 
over  the  lake  in  the  first  emotions  of  excited  pleasure,  I  am  doubt- 
ful if  the  followers  of  Balboa  felt  more  enthusiasm  when,  from  the 
heights  of  the  Andes,  they  saw  for  the  first  time  the  great  Western 
Ocean."  This  practical  claim  of  discovery  was  not  well  founded, 
nor  was  his  sail  on  the  lake  in  an  india-rubber  boat  "  the  first  ever 
attempted  on  this  interior  sea." 

Dating  from  1825,  the  lake  region  of  Utah  became  more  and 
more  familiar  to  American  trappers  and  explorers.  In  1833  Cap- 
tain Bonneville,  of  the  United  States  army,  obtained  leave  of 
absence,  and  with  a  company  of  1 10  trappers  set  out  for  the  Far 
West  by  the  Platte  route.  Crossing  the  Rockies  through  the 
South  Pass,  he  made  a  fortified  camp  on  Green  River,  whence  he 
for  three  years  explored  the  country.  One  of  his  parties,  under 
Joseph  Walker,  was  sent  to  trap  beavers  on  Great  Salt  Lake  and 
to  explore  it  thoroughly,  making  notes  and  maps.  Bonneville,  in 
his  description  of  the  lake  to  Irving,  declared  that  lofty  mountains 
rose  from  its  bosom,  and  greatly  magnified  its  extent  to  the  south.1 
Walker's  party  got  within  sight  of  the  lake,  but  found  themselves 
in  a  desert,  and  accordingly  changed  their  course  and  crossed  the 
Sierras  into  California.  In  Bonneville's  map  the  lake  is  called 
"  Lake  Bonneville  or  Great  Salt  Lake,"  and  Irving  calls  it  Lake 
Bonneville  in  his  "  Astoria." 

The  day  after  the  first  arrival  of  Brigham  Young  in  Salt  Lake 
Valley  (Sunday,  July  25),  church  services  were  held  and  the  sacra- 
ment was  administered.  Young  addressed  his  followers,  indicating 
at  the  start  his  idea  of  his  leadership  and  of  the  ownership  of  the 
land,  which  was  then  Mexican  territory.  "  He  said  that  no  man 
should  buy  any  land  who  came  here,"  says  Woodruff ;  "  that  he 
had  none  to  sell ;  but  every  man  should  have  his  land  measured 

1  Bonneville's  "Adventures,"  p.  184. 


THE   FOUNDING   OF   SALT   LAKE   CITY  397 

out  to  him  for  city  and  farming  purposes.     He  might  till  it  as  he 
pleased,  but  he  must  be  industrious  and  take  care  of  it."  * 

The  next  day  a  party,  including  all  the  Twelve  who  were 
in  the  valley,  set  out  to  explore  the  neighborhood.  They  visited 
and  bathed  in  Great  Salt  Lake,  climbed  and  named  Ensign 
Peak,  and  met  a  party  of  Utah  Indians,  who  made  signs  that 
they  wanted  to  trade.  On  their  return  Young  explained  to  the 
people  his  ideas  of  an  exploration  of  the  country  to  the  west 
and  north. 

Meanwhile,  those  left  in  the  valley  had  been  busy  staking  off 
fields,  irrigating  them,  and  planting  vegetables  and  grain.  Some 
buildings,  among  them  a  blacksmith  shop,  were  begun.  The  \ 
members  of  the  Battalion,  about  four  hundred  of  whom  had  now  \ 
arrived,  constructed  a  "bowery."  Camps  of  Utah  Indians  were 
visited,  and  the  white  men  witnessed  their  method  of  securing 
for  food  the  abundant  black  crickets,  by  driving  them  into  an 
enclosure  fenced  with  brush  which  they  set  on  fire. 

On  July  28,  after  a  council  of  the  Quorum  had  been  held,  the 
site  of  the  Temple  was  selected  by  Brigham  Young,  who  waved 
his  hand  and  said :  "  Here  is  the  40  acres  for  the  Temple.  The 
city  can  be  laid  out  perfectly  square,  east  and  west."2  The  40 
acres  were  a  few  days  later  reduced  to  10,  but  the  site  then  chosen 
is  that  on  which  the  big  Temple  now  stands.  It  was  also  decided 
that  the  city  should  be  laid  out  in  lots  measuring  10  by  20  rods 
each,  8  lots  to  a  block,  with  streets  8  rods  wide,  and  sidewalks  20 
feet  wide ;  each  house  to  be  erected  in  the  centre  of  a  lot,  and  20 
feet  from  the  front  line.  Land  was  also  reserved  for  four  parks 
of  10  acres  each. 

Men  were  at  once  sent  into  the  mountains  to  secure  logs  for 
cabins,  and  work  on  adobe  huts  was  also  begun.  On  August  7 
those  of  the  Twelve  present  selected  their  "inheritances,"  each 
taking  a  block  near  the  Temple.  A  week  later  the  Twelve  in 
council  selected  the  blocks  on  which  the  companies  under  each 

1  "After  the  assignments  were  made,  persons  commenced  the  usual  speculations  of 
selling  according  to  eligibility  of  situation.  This  called  out  anathemas  from  the  spiritual 
powers,  and  no  one  was  permitted  to  traffic  for  fancy  profit ;  if  any  sales  were  made,  the 
first  cost  and  actual  value  of  improvements  were  all  that  was  to  be  allowed.  All  specu- 
lative sales  were  made  sub  rosa.  Exchanges  are  made  and  the  records  kept  by  the 
register."  —  Gunnison,  "The  Mormons"  (1852),  p.  145. 

a  Tullidge's  "  Life  of  Brigham  Young,"  p.  178. 


398  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

should  settle.     The  city  as  then  laid  out  covered  a  space  nearly 
four  miles  long  and  three  broad.1 

On  August  22  a  General  Conference  decided  that  the  city 
should  be  called  City  of  the  Great  Salt  Lake.  When  the  city  was 
incorporated,  in  185 1,  the  name  was  changed  to  Salt  Lake  City. 
In  view  of  the  approaching  return  of  Young  and  his  fellow  offi- 
cers to  the  Missouri  River,  the  company  in  the  valley  were  placed 
in  charge  of  the  prophet's  uncle,  John  Smith,  as  Patriarch,  with  a 
high  council  and  other  officers  of  a  Stake. 

When  P.  P.  Pratt  and  the  following  companies  reached  the 
valley  in  September,  they  found  a  fort  partly  built,  and  every  one 
busy,  preparing  for  the  winter.  The  crops  of  that  year  had  been  \ 
a  disappointment,  having  been  planted  too  late.  The  potatoes 
raised  varied  in  size  from  that  of  a  pea  to  half  an  inch  in  diame- 
ter, but  they  were  saved  and  used  successfully  for  seed  the  next 
year.  A  great  deal  of  grain  was  sown  during  the  autumn  and 
winter,  considerable  wheat  having  been  brought  from  California 
by  members  of  the  Battalion.  Pratt  says  that  the  snow  was  several 
inches  deep  when  they  did  some  of  their  ploughing,  but  that  the 
ground  was  clear  early  in  March.  A  census  taken  in  March,  1848, 
gave  the  city  a  population  of  1671,  with  423  houses  erected. 

The  Saints  in  the  valley  spent  a  good  deal  of  that  winter  work- 
ing on  their  cabins,  making  furniture,  and  carting  fuel.  They  dis- 
covered that  the  warning  about  the  lack  of  timber  was  well 
founded,  all  the  logs  and  firewood  being  hauled  from  a  point  eight 
miles  distant,  over  bad  roads,  and  with  teams  that  had  not  recov- 
ered from  the  effect  of  the  overland  trip.  Many  settlers  therefore 
built  huts  of  adobe  bricks,  some  with  cloth  roofs.  Lack  of  expe- 
rience in  handling  adobe  clay  for  building  purposes  led  to  some  sad 
results,  the  rains  and  frosts  causing  the  bricks  to  crumble  or  burst, 
and  more  than  one  of  these  houses  tumbled  down  around  their 
owners.  Even  the  best  of  the  houses  had  very  flat  roofs,  the  new- 
comers believing  that  the  climate  was  always  dry ;  and  when  the 
rains  and  melted  snow  came,  those  who  had  umbrellas  frequently 
raised  them  indoors  to  protect  their  beds  or  their  fires. 

1  Tullidge  says:  "The  land  portion  of  each  family,  as  a  rule,  was  the  acre-and-a- 
quarter  lot  designated  in  the  plan  of  the  city;  but  the  chief  men  of  the  pioneers,  who 
had  a  plurality  of  wives  and  numerous  children,  received  larger  portions  of  the  city  lots. 
The  giving  of  farms,  as  shown  in  the  General  Epistle,  was  upon  the  same  principle  as 
the  apportioning  of  city  lots.     The  farm  of  five,  ten,  or  twenty  acres  was  not  for  the 


THE   FOUNDING   OF   SALT   LAKE   CITY  399 

Two  years  later,  when  Captain  Stansbury  of  the  United  States 
Topographical  Engineers,  with  his  surveying  party,  spent  the 
winter  in  Salt  Lake  City,  in  "a  small,  unfurnished  house  of  unburnt 
brick  or  adobe,  unplastered,  and  roofed  with  boards  loosely  nailed 
on,"  which  let  in  the  rains  in  streams,  he  says  they  were  better 
lodged  than  many  of  their  neighbors.  "Very  many  families,"  he 
explains,  "  were  obliged  still  to  lodge  wholly  or  in  part  in  their 
wagons,  which,  being  covered,  served,  when  taken  off  from  the 
wheels  and  set  upon  the  ground,  to  make  bedrooms,  of  limited 
dimensions,  it  is  true,  but  exceedingly  comfortable.  In  the  very 
next  enclosure  to  that  of  our  party,  a  whole  family  of  children 
had  no  other  shelter  than  one  of  these  wagons,  where  they  slept 
all  winter." 

The  furniture  of  the  early  houses  was  of  the  rudest  kind,  since 
only  the  most  necessary  articles  could  be  brought  in  the  wagons. 
A  chest  or  a  barrel  would  do  for  a  table,  a  bunk  built  against  the 
side  logs  would  be  called  a  bed,  and  such  rude  stools  as  could  be 
most  easily  put  together  served  for  chairs. 

The  letters  sent  for  publication  in  England  to  attract  emigrants 
spoke  of  a  mild  and  pleasant  winter,  not  telling  of  the  privations 
of  these  pioneers.  The  greatest  actual  suffering  was  caused  by  a 
lack  of  food  as  spring  advanced.  A  party  had  been  sent  to  Cali- 
fornia, in  November,  for  cattle,  seeds,  etc.,  but  they  lost  forty  of  a 
herd  of  two  hundred  on  the  way  back.  The  cattle  that  had  been 
brought  across  the  plains  were  in  poor  condition  on  their  arrival, 
and  could  find  very  little  winter  pasturage.  Many  of  the  milk 
cows  driven  all  the  way  from  the  Missouri  had  died  by  midsum- 
mer. By  spring  parched  grain  was  substituted  for  coffee,  a  kind 
of  molasses  was  made  from  beets,  and  what  little  flour  could  be 
obtained  was  home-ground  and  unbolted.  Even  so  high  an  officer 
of  the  church  as  P.  P.  Pratt,  thus  describes  the  privations  of  his 
family :  "  In  this  labor  [ploughing,  cultivating,  and  sowing]  every 
woman  and  child  in  my  family,  so  far  as  they  were  of  sufficient 

mechanic,  nor  the  manufacturer,  nor  even  for  the  farmer,  as  a  mere  personal  property, 
but  for  the  good  of  the  community  at  large,  to  give  the  substance  of  the  earth  to  feed 
the  population.  .  .  .  While  the  farmer  was  planting  and  cultivating  his  farm,  the 
mechanic  and  tradesman  produced  his  supplies  and  wrought  his  daily  work  for  the  com- 
munity." He  adds,  "  It  can  be  easily  understood  how  some  departures  were  made  from 
this  original  plan."  This  understanding  can  be  gained  in  no  better  way  than  by  inspect- 
ing the  list  of  real  estate  left  by  Brigham  Young  in  his  will  as  his  individual  possession. 


400  THE    STORY    OF   THE    MORMONS 

age  and  strength,  had  joined  to  help  me,  and  had  toiled  incessantly 
in  the  field,  suffering  every  hardship  which  human  nature  could 
well  endure.  Myself  and  most  of  them  were  compelled  to  go  with 
bare  feet  for  several  months,  reserving  our  Indian  moccasins  for 
extra  occasions.  We  toiled  hard,  and  lived  on  a  few  greens,  and 
on  thistle  and  other  roots." 

This  was  the  year  of  the  great  visitation  of  crickets,  the  destruc- 
tion of  which  has  given  the  Mormons  material  for  the  story  of  one 
of  their  miracles.  The  crickets  appeared  in  May,  and  they  ate 
the  country  clear  before  them.  In  a  wheat-field  they  would  aver- 
age two  or  three  to  a  head  of  grain.  Even  ditches  filled  with 
water  would  not  stop  them.  Kane  described  them  as  "  wingless, 
dumpy,  black,  swollen-headed,  with  bulging  eyes  in  cases  like 
goggles,  mounted  upon  legs  of  steel  wire  and  clock  spring,  and 
with  a  general  personal  appearance  that  justified  the  Mormons  in 
comparing  them  to  a  cross  of  a  spider  and  the  buffalo."  When 
this  plague  was  at  its  worst,  the  Mormons  saw  flocks  of  gulls 
descend  and  devour  the  crickets  so  greedily  that  they  would  often 
disgorge  the  food  undigested.  Day  after  day  did  the  gulls  appear, 
until  the  plague  was  removed.  Utah  guide-books  of  to-day  refer 
to  this  as  a  divine  interposition  of  Heaven  in  behalf  of  the  Saints. 
But  writers  of  that  date,  like  P.  P.  Pratt,  ignore  the  miraculous 
feature,  and  the  white  gulls  dot  the  fields  between  Salt  Lake  City 
and  Ogden  in  1901  just  as  they  did  in  the  summer  of  1848,  and 
as  Fremont  found  them  there  in  September,  1843.  Gulls  are 
abundant  all  over  the  plains,  and  are  found  with  the  snipe  and 
geese  as  far  north  as  North  Dakota.  Heaven's  interposition,  if 
exercised,  was  not  thorough,  for,  after  the  crickets,  came  grass- 
hoppers in  such  numbers  that  one  writer  says,  "  On  one  occasion 
a  quarter  [of  one  cloud]  dropped  into  the  lake  and  were  blown  on 
shore  by  the  wind,  in  rows  sometimes  two  feet  deep,  for  a  distance 
of  two  miles." 

But  the  crops,  with  all  the  drawbacks,  did  better  than  had  been 
deemed  possible,  and  on  August  10  the  people  held  a  kind  of  harvest 
festival  in  the  "bowery"  in  the  centre  of  their  fort,  when  "large 
sheaves  of  wheat,  rye,  barley,  oats,  and  other  productions  were 
hoisted  on  poles  for  public  exhibition."  *  Still,  the  outlook  was  so 
alarming  that  word  was  sent  to  Winter  Quarters  advising  against 

1  Pratt's  "  Autobiography,"  p.  406. 


THE   FOUNDING   OF   SALT    LAKE   CITY  40 1 

increasing  their  population  at  that  time,  and  Brigham  Young's 
son  urged  that  a  message  be  sent  to  his  father  giving  similar 
advice.1  Nevertheless  P.  P.  Pratt  did  not  hesitate  in  a  letter 
addressed  to  the  Saints  in  England,  on  September  5,  to  say  that 
they  had  had  ears  of  corn  to  boil  for  a  month,  that  he  had  secured 
"a  good  harvest  of  wheat  and  rye  without  irrigation,"  and  that 
there  would  be  from  ten  thousand  to  twenty  thousand  bushels  of 
grain  in  the  valley  more  than  was  needed  for  home  consumption. 

1  Bancroft's  "  History  of  Utah,"  p.  281. 


CHAPTER   II 

PROGRESS   OF  THE   SETTLEMENT 

With  the  arrival  of  the  later  companies  from  Winter  Quarters 
the  population  of  the  city  was  increased  by  the  winter  of  1848  to 
about  five  thousand,  or  more  than  one-quarter  of  those  who  went 
out  from  Nauvoo.  The  settlers  then  had  three  sawmills,  one 
flouring  mill,  and  a  threshing  machine  run  by  water,  another  saw- 
mill and  flour  mill  nearly  completed,  and  several  mills  under  way 
for  the  manufacture  of  sugar  from  corn  stalks. 

Brigham  Young,  again  on  the  ground,  took  the  lead  at  once 
in  pushing  on  the  work.  To  save  fencing,  material  for  which  was 
hard  to  obtain,  a  tract  of  eight  thousand  acres  was  set  apart  and 
fenced  for  the  common  use,  within  which  farmhouses  could  be  built. 
The  plan  adopted  for  fencing  in  the  city  itself  was  to  enclose  each 
ward  separately,  every  lot  owner  building  his  share.  A  stone 
council  house,  forty-five  feet  square,  was  begun,  the  labor  count- 
ing as  a  part  of  the  tithe ;  unappropriated  city  lots  were  distributed 
among  the  new-comers  by  a  system  of  drawing,  and  the  building 
of  houses  went  briskly  on,  the  officers  of  the  church  sharing  in  the 
labor.  A  number  of  bridges  were  also  provided,  a  tax  of  one  per 
cent  being  levied  to  pay  for  them. 

Among  the  incidents  of  the  winter  mentioned  in  an  epistle  of 
the  First  Presidency  was  the  establishment  of  schools  in  the  dif- 
ferent wards,  in  which,  it  was  stated,  "  the  Hebrew,  Greek,  Latin, 
French,  German,  Tahitian  and  English  languages  have  been 
taught  successfully "  ;  and  the  organization  of  a  temporary  local 
government,  and  of  a  Stake  of  Zion,  with  Daniel  Spencer  as 
president.  It  was  early  the  policy  of  the  church  to  carry  on  an 
extended  system  of  public  works,  including  manufacturing  enter- 
prises. The  assisted  immigrants  were  expected  to  repay  by  work 
on  these  buildings  the  advance  made  to  them  to  cover  their  trav- 

402 


PROGRESS    OF   THE    SETTLEMENT  403 

elling  expenses.  Young  saw  at  once  the  advantage  of  starting 
branches  of  manufacture,  both  to  make  his  people  independent 
of  a  distant  supply  and  to  give  employment  to  the  population. 
Writing  to  Orson  Pratt  on  October  14,  1849,  when  Pratt  was  in 
England,  he  said  that  they  would  have  the  material  for  cotton  and 
woollen  factories  ready  by  the  time  men  and  machinery  were  pre- 
pared to  handle  it,  and  urged  him  to  send  on  cotton  operatives  and 
"all  the  necessary  fixtures."  The  third  General  Epistle  spoke  of 
the  need  of  furnaces  and  forges,  and  Orson  Pratt,  in  an  address 
to  the  Saints  in  Great  Britain,  dated  July  2,  1850,  urged  the  officers 
of  companies  "  to  seek  diligently  in  every  branch  for  wise,  skilful 
and  ingenious  mechanics,  manufacturers,  potters,  etc."1 

The  General  Conference  of  October,  1849,  ordered  one  man  to 
build  a  glass  factory  in  the  valley,  and  voted  to  organize  a  com- 
pany to  transport  passengers  and  freight  between  the  Missouri 
River  and  California,  directing  that  settlements  be  established 
along  the  route.  This  company  was  called  the  Great  Salt  Lake 
Valley  Carrying  Company.  Its  prospectus  in  the  Frontier  Guardian 
in  December,  1849,  stated  that  the  fare  from  Kanesville  to  Sutter's 
Fort,  California,  would  be  $300,  and  the  freight  rate  to  Great  Salt 
Lake  City  $12.50  per  hundredweight,  the  passenger  wagons  to  be 
drawn  by  four  horses  or  mules,  and  the  freight  wagons  by  oxen. 

But  the  work  of  making  the  new  Mormon  home  a  business  and 
manufacturing  success  did  not  meet  with  rapid  encouragement. 
Where  settlements  were  made  outside  of  Salt  Lake  City,  the 
people  were  not  scattered  in  farmhouses  over  the  country,  but 
lived  in  what  they  called  "forts,"  squalid  looking  settlements,  laid 
out  in  a  square  and  defended  by  a  dirt  or  adobe  wall.  The  inhab- 
itants of  these  settlements  had  to  depend  on  the  soil  for  their  subsis- 
tence, and  such  necessary  workmen  as  carpenters  and  shoemakers 
plied  their  trade  as  they  could  find  leisure  after  working  in  the 
fields.  When  Johnston's  army  entered  the  valley  in  1858,  the 
largest  attempt  at  manufacturing  that  had  been  undertaken  there 
—  a  beet  sugar  factory,  toward  which  English  capitalists  had  con- 
tributed more  than  $100,000  —  had  already  proved  a  failure.    There 

1  The  General  Epistle  of  April,  1852,  announced  two  potteries  in  operation,  a  small 
woollen  factory  begun,  a  nail  factory,  wooden  bowl  factory,  and  many  grist  and  saw  mills. 
The  General  Epistle  of  October,  1855,  enumerated,  as  among  the  established  industries, 
a  foundery,  a  cutlery  shop,  and  manufactories  of  locks,  cloth,  leather,  hats,  cordage, 
brushes,  soap,  paper,  combs,  and  cutlery. 


404  THE    STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

were  tanneries,  distilleries,  and  breweries  in  operation,  a  few  rifles 
and  revolvers  were  made  from  iron  supplied  by  wagon  tires,  and 
in  the  larger  settlements  a  few  good  mechanics  were  kept  busy. 
But  if  no  outside  influences  had  contributed  to  the  prosperity  of 
the  valley,  and  hastened  the  day  when  it  secured  railroad  commu- 
nication, the  future  of  the  people  whom  Young  gathered  in  Utah 
would  have  been  very  different. 

A  correspondent  of  the  New  York  Tribune,  on  his  way  to  Cali- 
fornia, writing  on  July  8,  1849,  tnus  described  Salt  Lake  City  as  it 
presented  itself  to  him  at  that  time :  — 

"  There  are  no  hotels,  because  there  had  been  no  travel ;  no  barber  shops, 
because  every  one  chose  to  shave  himself  and  no  one  had  time  to  shave  his  neigh- 
bor ;  no  stores,  because  they  had  no  goods  to  sell  nor  time  to  traffic ;  no  center 
of  business,  because  all  were  too  busy  to  make  a  center.  There  was  abundance 
of  mechanics'  shops,  of  dressmakers,  milliners  and  tailors,  etc.,  but  they  needed 
no  sign,  nor  had  they  any  time  to  paint  or  erect  one,  for  they  were  crowded  with 
business.  Besides  their  several  trades,  all  must  cultivate  the  land  or  die  ;  for  the 
country  was  new,  and  no  cultivation  but  their  own  within  1000  miles.  Everyone 
had  his  lot  and  built  on  it ;  every  one  cultivated  it,  and  perhaps  a  small  farm  in 
the  distance.  And  the  strangest  of  all  was  that  this  great  city,  extending  over 
several  square  miles,  had  been  erected,  and  every  house  and  fence  made,  within 
nine  or  ten  months  of  our  arrival ;  while  at  the  same  time  good  bridges  were 
erected  over  the  principal  streams,  and  the  country  settlements  extended  nearly 
100  miles  up  and  down  the  valley."  1 

The  winter  of  1 848  set  in  early  and  severe,  with  frequent  snow- 
storms from  December  1  until  late  in  February,  and  the  tempera- 
ture dropping  one  degree  below  zero  as  late  as  February  5.  The 
deep  snow  in  the  canons,  the  only  outlets  through  the  mountains, 
rendered  it  difficult  to  bring  in  fuel,  and  the  suffering  from  the 
cold  was  terrible,  as  many  families  had  arrived  too  late  to  provide 
themselves  with  any  shelter  but  their  prairie  wagons.  The  appre- 
hended scarcity  of  food,  too,  was  realized.  Early  in  February  an 
inventory  of  the  breadstuffs  in  the  valley,  taken  by  the  Bishops, 
showed  only  three-quarters  of  a  pound  a  day  per  head  until  July 
5,  although  it  was  believed  that  many  had  concealed  stores  on 
hand.  When  the  first  General  Epistle  of  the  First  Presidency  was 
sent  out  from  Salt  Lake  City  in  the  spring  of  1849,2  corn,  which 
had    sold   for   $2    and    $3    a    bushel,  was    not  to  be  had,  wheat 

1  ATew  York  Tribune,  October  9,  1849. 

2  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XI,  p.  227. 


PROGRESS    OF    THE    SETTLEMENT  405 

had  ranged  from  $4  to  $5  a  bushel,  and  potatoes  from  $6  to  $20, 
with  none  then  in  market. 

The  people  generally  exerted  themselves  to  obtain  food  for 
those  whose  supplies  had  been  exhausted,  but  the  situation  became 
desperate  before  the  snow  melted.  Three  attempts  to  reach  Fort 
Bridger  failed  because  of  the  depth  of  snow  in  the  canons.  There 
is  a  record  of  a  winter  hunt  of  two  rival  parties  of  100  men  each, 
but  they  killed  "  varmints "  rather  than  game,  the  list  including 
700  wolves  and  foxes,  20  minks  and  skunks,  500  hawks,  owls  and 
magpies,  and  1000  ravens.1  Some  of  the  Mormons,  with  the  aid 
of  Indian  guides,  dug  roots  that  the  savages  had  learned  to  eat, 
and  some  removed  the  hide  roofs  from  their  cabins  and  stewed 
them  for  food.  The  lack  of  breadstuffs  continued  until  well  into 
the  summer,  and  the  celebration  of  the  anniversary  of  the  arrival 
of  the  pioneers  in  the  valley,  which  had  been  planned  for  July  4, 
was  postponed  until  the  24th,  as  Young  explained  in  his  address, 
"  that  we  might  have  a  little  bread  to  set  on  our  tables." 

Word  was  now  sent  to  the  states  and  to  Europe  that  no  more 
of  the  brethren  should  make  the  trip  to  the  valley  at  that  time 
unless  they  had  means  to  get  through  without  assistance,  and 
could  bring  breadstuffs  to  last  them  several  months  after  their 
arrival. 

But  something  now  occurred  which  turned  the  eyes  of  a  large 
part  of  the  world  to  that  new  acquisition  of  the  United  States  on 
the  Pacific  coast  which  was  called  California,  which  made  the 
Mormon  settlement  in  Utah  a  way  station  for  thousands  of  trav- 
ellers where  a  dozen  would  not  have  passed  it  without  the  new 
incentive,  and  which  brought  to  the  Mormon  settlers,  almost  at 
their  own  prices,  supplies  of  which  they  were  desperately  in  need, 
and  which  they  could  not  otherwise  have  obtained.  This  some- 
thing was  the  discovery  of  gold  in  California. 

When  the  news  of  this  discovery  reached  the  Atlantic  states 
and  those  farther  west,  men  simply  calculated  by  what  route  they 
could  most  quickly  reach  the  new  El  Dorado,  and  the  first  com- 
panies of  miners  who  travelled  across  the  plains  sacrificed  every- 
thing for  speed.  The  first  rush  passed  through  Salt  Lake  Valley  in 
August,  1849.  Some  of  the  Mormons  who  had  reached  California 
with  Brannan's  company  had  by  that  time  arrived  in  the  valley, 
1  General  Epistle,  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XI,  p.  227. 


406  THE    STORY    OF   THE   MORMONS 

bringing  with  them  a  few  bags  of  gold  dust.  When  the  would-be 
miners  from  the  East  saw  this  proof  of  the  existence  of  gold  in  the 
country  ahead  of  them,  their  enthusiasm  knew  no  limits,  and  their 
one  wish  was  to  lighten  themselves  so  that  they  could  reach  the 
gold-fields  in  the  shortest  time  possible.  Then  the  harvest  of  the 
Mormons  began.  Pack  mules  and  horses  that  had  been  worth 
only  $2$  or  $30  would  now  bring  $200  in  exchange  for  other  arti- 
cles at  a  low  price,  and  the  travellers  were  auctioning  off  their  sur- 
plus supplies  every  day.  For  a  light  wagon  they  did  not  hesitate 
to  offer  three  or  four  heavy  ones,  with  a  yoke  of  oxen  sometimes 
thrown  in.  Such  needed  supplies  as  domestic  sheetings  could  be 
had  at  from  five  to  ten  cents  a  yard,  spades  and  shovels,  with 
which  the  miners  were  overstocked,  at  fifty  cents  each,  and  nearly 
everything  in  their  outfit,  except  sugar  and  coffee,  at  half  the  price 
that  would  have  been  charged  at  wholesale  in  the  Eastern  states.1 

The  commercial  profit  to  the  Mormons  from  this  emigration 
was  greater  still  in  1850,  when  the  rush  had  increased.  Before 
the  grain  of  that  summer  was  cut,  the  gold  seekers  paid  $1  a 
pound  for  flour  in  Salt  Lake  City.  After  the  new  grain  was  har- 
vested they  eagerly  bought  the  flour  as  fast  as  five  mills  could 
grind  it,  at  $25  per  hundredweight.  Unground  wheat  sold  for  $8 
a  bushel,  wood  for  $10  a  cord,  adobe  bricks  for  more  than  seven 
shillings  a  hundred,  and  skilled  mechanics  were  getting  twelve 
shillings  and  sixpence  a  day.2  At  the  same  time  that  the  emi- 
grants were  paying  so  well  for  what  they  absolutely  required,  they 
were  sacrificing  large  supplies  of  what  they  did  not  need  on  almost 
any  terms.  Some  of  them  had  started  across  the  plains  with  heavy 
loads  of  machinery  and  miscellaneous  goods,  on  which  they  ex- 
pected to  reap  a  big  profit  in  California.  Learning,  however,  when 
they  reached  Salt  Lake  City,  that  ship-loads  of  such  merchandise 
were  on  their  way  around  the  Horn,  the  owners  sacrificed  their 
stock  where  it  was,  and  hurried  on  to  get  their  share  of  the  gold. 

This  is  not  the  place  in  which  to  tell  the  story  of  that  rush  of 
the  gold  seekers.  The  clerk  at  Fort  Laramie  reported,  "  The 
total  number  of  emigrants  who  passed  this  post  up  to  June  10, 
1850,  included  16,915  men,  235  women,  242  children,  4672 
wagons,  14,974  horses,  4641  mules,  7475  oxen,  and   1653  cows." 

1  Salt  Lake  City  letter  to  the  Frontier  Guardian. 

2  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XII,  p.  350. 


PROGRESS  OF  THE   SETTLEMENT  407 

A  letter  from  Sacramento  dated  September  10,  1850,  gave  this 
picture  of  the  trail  left  by  these  travellers :  "  Many  believed  there 
are  dead  animals  enough  on  the  desert  (of  45  miles)  between  Hum- 
boldt Lake  and  Carson  River  to  pave  a  road  the  whole  distance. 
We  will  make  a  moderate  estimate  and  say  there  is  a  dead  animal 
to  every  five  feet,  left  on  the  desert  this  season.  I  counted  153 
wagons  within  a  mile  and  a  half.  Not  half  of  those  left  were  to 
be  seen,  many  having  been  burned  to  make  lights  in  the  night. 
The  desert  is  strewn  with  all  kinds  of  property  —  tools,  clothes, 
crockery,  harnesses,  etc." 

Naturally,  in  this  rush  for  sudden  riches,  many  a  Mormon  had 
a  desire  to  join.  A  dozen  families  left  Utah  for  California  early 
in  1849,  and  in  March,  185 1,  a  company  of  more  than  five  hundred 
assembled  in  Payson,  preparatory  to  making  the  trip.  Here  was 
an  unexpected  danger  to  the  growth  of  the  Mormon  population, 
and  one  which  the  head  of  the  church  did  not  delay  in  checking. 
The  second  General  Epistle,  dated  October  12,  1849,1  stated  that 
the  valley  of  the  Sacramento  was  unhealthy,  and  that  the  Saints 
could  do  better  raising  grain  in  Utah,  adding,  "  The  true  use  of 
gold  is  for  paving  streets,  covering  houses,  and  making  culinary 
dishes,  and  when  the  Saints  shall  have  preached  the  Gospel,  raised 
grain,  and  built  up  cities  enough,  the  Lord  will  open  up  the  way  for 
a  supply  of  gold,  to  the  perfect  satisfaction  of  his  people." 

Notwithstanding  this  advice,  a  good  many  Mormons  acted  on 
the  idea  that  the  Lord  would  help  those  who  helped  themselves, 
and  that  if  they  were  to  have  golden  culinary  dishes  they  must  go 
and  dig  the  gold.  Accordingly,  we  find  the  third  General  Epistle, 
dated  April  12,  1850,  acknowledging  that  many  brethren  had  gone 
to  the  gold  mines,  but  declaring  that  they  were  counselled  only  "by 
their  own  wills  and  covetous  feelings,"  and  that  they  would  have 
done  more  good  by  staying  in  the  valley.  Young  did  not,  how- 
ever, stop  with  a  mere  rebuke.  He  proposed  to  check  the  exodus. 
"  Let  such  men,"  the  Epistle  added,  "  remember  that  they  are  not 
wanted  in  our  midst.  Let  such  leave  their  carcasses  where  they 
do  their  work ;  we  want  not  our  burial  grounds  polluted  with  such 
hypocrites."  Young  was  quite  as  plain  spoken  in  his  remarks  to 
the  General  Conference  that  spring,  naming  as  those  who  "  will  go 
down  to  hell,  poverty-stricken  and  naked,"  the  Mormons  who  felt 

1  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XII,  p.  1 19. 


4o8  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

that  they  were  so  poor  that  they  would  have  to  go  to  the  gold 
mines.1  Such  talk  had  its  effect,  and  Salt  Lake  Valley  retained 
most  of  its  population. 

The  progress  of  the  settlement  received  a  serious  check  some 
years  later  in  the  failure  of  the  crops  in  1855,  followed  by  a  near 
approach  to  a  famine  in  the  ensuing  winter.  Very  little  reference 
to  this  was  made  in  the  official  church  correspondence,  but  a  pic- 
ture of  the  situation  in  Salt  Lake  City  that  winter  was  drawn  in 
two  letters  from  Heber  C.  Kimball  to  his  sons  in  England.2  In 
the  first,  written  in  February,  he  said  that  his  family  and  Brigham 
Young's  were  then  on  a  ration  of  half  a  pound  of  bread  each  per 
day,  and  that  thousands  had  scarcely  any  breadstuff  at  all.  Kim- 
ball's family  of  one  hundred  persons  then  had  on  hand  about  seventy 
bushels  of  potatoes  and  a  few  beets  and  carrots,  "so  you  can  judge," 
he  says,  "  whether  we  can  get  through  until  harvest  without  dig- 
ging roots."  There  were  then  not  more  than  five  hundred  bushels 
of  grain  in  the  tithing  office,  and  all  public  work  was  stopped  until 
the  next  harvest,  and  all  mechanics  were  advised  to  drop  their  tools 
and  to  set  about  raising  grain.  "  There  is  not  a  settlement  in  the 
territory,"  said  the  writer,  "  but  is  also  in  the  same  fix  as  we  are. 
Dollars  and  cents  do  not  count  in  these  times,  for  they  are  the 
tightest  I  have  ever  seen  in  the  territory  of  Utah."  In  April  he 
wrote :  "  I  suppose  one-half  the  church  stock  is  dead.  There  are 
not  more  than  one-half  the  people  that  have  bread,  and  they  have 
not  more  than  one-half  or  one  quarter  of  a  pound  a  day  to  a 
person.  A  great  portion  of  the  people  are  digging  roots,  and  hun- 
dreds and  thousands,  their  teams  being  dead,  are  under  the  neces- 
sity of  spading  their  ground  to  put  in  their  grain."  The  harvest 
of  1856  also  suffered  from  drought  and  insects,  and  the  Deseret 
News  that  summer  declared  that  "the  most  rigid  economy  and 
untiring,  well-directed  industry  may  enable  us  to  escape  starvation 
until  a  harvest  in  1857,  and  until  the  lapse  of  another  year  emi- 
grants and  others  will  run  great  risks  of  starving  unless  they  bring 
their  supplies  with  them."  The  first  load  of  barley  brought  into 
Salt  Lake  City  that  summer  sold  for  $2  a  bushel. 

The  first  building  erected  in  Salt  Lake  City  in  which  to  hold 
church  services  was  called  a  tabernacle.  It  was  begun  in  185 1, 
and  was  consecrated  on  April  6,  1852.     It  stood  in  Temple  block, 

1  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XII,  p.  274.  2  Ibid.,  Vol.  XVIII,  pp.  395,  476- 


PROGRESS   OF  THE   SETTLEMENT  409 

where  the  Assembly  Hall  now  stands,  measuring  about  60  by 
120  feet,  and  providing  accommodation  for  2500  people.  The 
present  Tabernacle,  in  which  the  public  church  services  are 
held,  was  completed  in  1870.  It  stands  just  west  of  the  Temple, 
is  elliptical  in  shape,  and,  with  its  broad  gallery  running  around 
the  entire  interior,  except  the  end  occupied  by  the  organ  loft  and 
pulpit,  it  can  seat  about  9000  persons.  Its  acoustic  properties 
are  remarkable,  and  one  of  the  duties  of  any  guide  who  exhibits 
the  auditorium  to  visitors  is  to  station  them  at  the  end  of  the 
gallery  opposite  the  pulpit,  and  to  drop  a  pin  on  the  floor  to 
show  them  how  distinctly  that  sound  can  be  heard. 

The  Temple  in  Salt  Lake  City  was  begun  in  April,  1853,  and 
was  not  dedicated  until  April,  1893.  This  building  is  devoted  to 
the  secret  ceremonies  of  the  church,  and  no  Gentile  is  ever  admitted 
to  it.  The  building,  of  granite  taken  from  the  near-by  mountains, 
is  architecturally  imposing,  measuring  200  by  100  feet.  Its  cost  is 
admitted  to  have  been  about  $4,000,000.  The  building  could 
probably  be  duplicated  to-day  for  one-half  that  sum.  The  excuse 
given  by  church  authorities  for  the  excessive  cost  is  that,  during 
the  early  years  of  the  work  upon  it,  the  granite  had  to  be  hauled 
from  the  mountains  by  ox  teams,  and  that  everything  in  the  way 
of  building  material  was  expensive  in  Utah  when  the  church  there 
was  young.  The  interior  is  divided  into  different  rooms,  in  which 
such  ceremonies  as  the  baptism  for  the  dead  are  performed ;  the 
baptismal  font  is  copied  after  the  one  that  was  in  the  Temple  at 
Nauvoo. 

There  are  three  other  temples  in  Utah,  all  of  which  were  com- 
pleted before  the  one  in  Salt  Lake  City,  namely,  at  St.  George, 
at  Logan,  and  at  Manti. 


CHAPTER   III 
THE  FOREIGN   IMMIGRATION   TO   UTAH 

When  the  Mormons  began  their  departure  westward  from 
Nauvoo,  the  immigration  of  converts  from  Europe  was  suspended 
because  of  the  uncertainty  about  the  location  of  the  next  settlement, 
and  the  difficulty  of  transporting  the  existing  population.  But  the 
necessity  of  constant  additions  to  the  community  of  new-comers, 
and  especially  those  bringing  some  capital,  was  never  lost  sight  of 
by  the  heads  of  the  church.  An  evidence  of  this  was  given  even 
before  the  first  company  reached  the  Missouri  River. 

While  the  Saints  were  marching  through  Iowa  they  received 
intelligence  of  a  big  scandal  in  connection  with  the  emigration 
business  in  England,  and  P.  P.  Pratt,  Orson  Hyde,  and  John  Tay- 
lor were  hurriedly  sent  to  that  country  to  straighten  the  matter  out. 
The  Millennial  Star  in  the  early  part  of  1846  had  frequent  articles 
about  the  British  and  American  Commercial  Joint  Stock  Company, 
an  organization  incorporated  to  assist  poor  Saints  in  emigrating. 
The  principal  emigration  agent  in  Great  Britain  at  that  time  was 
R.  Hedlock.  He  was  the  originator  of  the  Joint  Stock  Company, 
and  Thomas  Ward  was  its  president.  The  Mormon  investigators 
found  that  more  than  ,£1644  of  the  contributions  of  the  stock- 
holders had  been  squandered,  and  that  Ward  had  been  lending 
Hedlock  money  with  which  to  pay  his  personal  debts.  Ward  and 
Hedlock  were  at  once  disfellowshipped,  and  contributions  to  the 
treasury  of  the  company  were  stopped.  Pratt  says  that  Hedlock 
fled  when  the  investigators  arrived,  leaving  many  debts,  "and 
finally  lived  incog,  in  London  with  a  vile  woman."  Thus  it  seems 
that  Mormon  business  enterprises  in  England  were  no  freer  from 
scandals  than  those  in  America. 

x""  The  efforts  of  the  leaders  of  the  church  were  now  exerted  to 
make  the  prospects  of  the  Saints  in  Utah  attractive  to  the  converts 

410 


THE  FOREIGN   IMMIGRATION   TO   UTAH  411 

in  England  whom  they  wished  to  add  to  the  population  of  their 
valley.  Young  and  his  associates  seem  to  have  entertained  the 
idea,  without  reckoning  on  the  rapid  settlement  of  California,  the 
migration  of  the  "  Forty-niners,"  and  the  connection  of  the  two 
coasts  by  rail,  that  they  could  constitute  a  little  empire  all  by  itself 
in  Utah,  which  would  be  self-supporting  as  well  as  independent, 
the  farmer  raising  food  for  the  mechanic,  and  the  mechanic  doing 
the  needed  work  for  the  farmer.  Accordingly,  the  church  did  not 
stop  short  of  every  kind  of  misrepresentation  and  deception  in 
belittling  to  the  foreigners  the  misfortunes  of  the  past,  and  pictur- 
ing to  them  the  fruitfulness  of  their  new  country,  and  the  ease 
with  which  they  could  become  landowners  there. 

Naturally,  after  the  expulsion  from  Illinois,  in  which  so  many 
foreign  converts  shared,  an  explanation  and  palliation  of  the  emi- 
gration thence  were  necessary.  In  the  United  States,  then  and 
ever  since,  the  Mormons  pictured  themselves  as  the  victims  of  an 
almost  unprecedented  persecution.  But  as  soon  as  John  Taylor 
reached  England,  in  1846,  he  issued  an  address  to  the  Saints  in 
Great  Britain1  in  which  he  presented  a  very  different  picture. 
Granting  that,  on  an  average,  they  had  not  obtained  more  than 
one-third  the  value  of  their  real  and  personal  property  when  they 
left  Illinois,  he  explained  that,  when  they  settled  there,  land  in 
Nauvoo  was  worth  only  from  $3  to  $20  per  acre,  while,  when  they 
left,  it  was  worth  from  $50  to  $1500  per  acre ;  in  the  same  period 
the  adjoining  farm  lands  had  risen  in  value  from  $1.25  and  $5  to 
from  $5  to  $50  per  acre.  He  assured  his  hearers,  therefore,  that 
the  one-third  value  which  they  had  obtained  had  paid  them  well 
for  their  labor.  Nor  was  this  all.  When  they  left,  they  had 
exchanged  their  property  for  horses,  cattle,  provisions,  clothing, 
etc.,  which  was  exactly  what  was  needed  by  settlers  in  a  new  coun- 
try. As  a  further  bait  he  went  on  to  explain  :  "  When  we  arrive 
in  California,  according  to  the  provisions  of  the  Mexican  govern- 
ment, each  family  will  be  entitled  to  a  large  tract  of  land,  amount- 
ing to  several  hundred  acres,"  and,  if  that  country  passed  into 
American  control,  he  looked  for  the  passage  of  a  law  giving  640 
acres  to  each  male  settler.  "  Thus,"  he  summed  up,  "  it  will  be 
easy  to  see  that  we  are  in  a  better  condition  than  when  we  were  in 
Nauvoo !  " 

1  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  VIII,  p.  115. 


4I2  THE   STORY    OF   THE    MORMONS 

The  misrepresentation  did  not  cease  here,  however.  After 
announcing  the  departure  of  Brigham  Young's  pioneer  company, 
Taylor1  wound  up  with  this  tissue  of  false  statements:  "The 
way  is  now  prepared ;  the  roads,  bridges,  and  ferry-boats  made ; 
there  are  stopping  places  also  on  the  way  where  they  can  rest, 
obtain  vegetables  and  corn,  and,  when  they  arrive  at  the  far  end, 
instead  of  finding  a  wild  waste,  they  will  meet  with  friends,  provi- 
sions and  a  home,  so  that  all  that  will  be  requisite  for  them  to  do 
will  be  to  find  sufficient  teams  to  draw  their  families,  and  to  take 
along  with  them  a  few  woollen  or  cotton  goods,  or  other  articles  of 
merchandise  which  will  be  light,  and  which  the  brethren  will 
require  until  they  can  manufacture  for  themselves.  "  How  many  a 
poor  Englishman,  toiling  over  the  plains  in  the  next  succeeding 
years,  and,  arriving  in  arid  Utah  to  find  himself  in  the  clutches  of 
an  organization  from  which  he  could  not  escape,  had  reason  to 
curse  the  man  who  drew  this  picture ! 

In  1847,  at  the  suggestion  of  Taylor,  Hyde,  and  Pratt,  who 
were  still  in  England,  a  petition  bearing  nearly  13,000  names  was 
addressed  to  Queen  Victoria,  setting  forth  the  misery  existing 
among  the  working  classes  in  Great  Britain,  suggesting,  as  the 
best  means  of  relief,  royal  aid  to  those  who  wished  to  emigrate  to 
"  the  island  of  Vancouver  or  to  the  great  territory  of  Oregon,"  and 
asking  her  "to  give  them  employment  in  improving  the  harbors  of 
those  countries,  or  in  erecting  forts  of  defence ;  or,  if  this  be  inex- 
pedient, to  furnish  them  provisions  and  means  of  subsistence  until 
they  can  produce  them  from  the  soil."  These  American  citizens 
did  not  hesitate  to  point  out  that  the  United  States  government 
was  favoring  the  settlement  of  its  territory  on  the  Pacific  coast,  and 
to  add :  "  While  the  United  States  do  manifest  such  a  strong  incli- 
nation, not  only  to  extend  and  enlarge  their  possessions  in  the  West, 

1  John  Taylor  was  born  in  England  in  1808,  and  emigrated  to  Canada  in  1829, 
where,  after  joining  the  Methodists,  he,  like  Joseph  Smith,  found  existing  churches 
unsatisfactory,  and  was  easily  secured  as  a  convert  by  P.  P.  Pratt.  He  was  elected  to 
the  Quorum,  and  was  sent  to  Great  Britain  as  a  missionary  in  1840,  writing  several 
pamphlets  while  there.  He  arrived  in  Nauvoo  with  Brigham  Young  in  1841,  and  there 
edited  the  Times  and  Seasons,  was  a  member  of  the  City  Council,  a  regent  of  the  uni- 
versity, and  judge  advocate  of  the  Legion,  and  was  in  the  room  with  the  prophet  when 
the  latter  was  shot.  He  was  the  Mormon  representative  in  France  in  1S49,  publish- 
ing a  monthly  paper  there,  translating  the  Mormon  Bible  into  the  French  language,  and 
preaching  later  at  Hamburg,  Germany.  He  was  superintendent  of  the  Mormon  church 
in  the  Eastern  states  in  1857,  when  Young  declared  war  against  the  United  States,  and 
he  succeeded  Young  as  head  of  the  church. 


THE    FOREIGN    IMMIGRATION   TO   UTAH  413 

but  also  to  people  them,  will  not  your  Majesty  look  well  to  British 
interests  in  those  regions,  and  adopt  timely  precautionary  measures 
to  maintain  a  balance  of  power  in  that  quarter  which,  in  the  opin- 
ion of  your  memorialists,  is  destined  at  no  very  distant  period  to 
participate  largely  in  the  China  trade? "  1 

The  Oregon  boundary  treaty  was  less  than  a  year  old  when  this 
petition  was  presented.  It  was  characteristic  of  Mormon  duplicity 
to  find  their  representatives  in  Great  Britain  appealing  to  Queen 
Victoria  on  the  ground  of  self-interest,  while  their  chiefs  in  the  United 
States  were  pointing  to  the  organization  of  the  Battalion  as  a  proof 
of  their  fidelity  to  the  home  government.  Practically  no  notice  was 
taken  of  this  petition.  Vancouver  Island,  was,  however,  held  out 
to  the  converts  in  Great  Britain  as  the  one  "  gathering  point  of  the 
Saints  from  the  islands  and  distant  portions  of  the  earth,"  until  the 
selection  of  Salt  Lake  Valley  as  the  Saints'  abiding  place. 

On  December  23,  1847,  Young,  in  behalf  of  the  Twelve,  issued 
from  Winter  Quarters  a  General  Epistle  to  the  church  2  which  gave 
an  account  of  his  trip  to  the  Salt  Lake  Valley,  directed  all  to  gather 
themselves  speedily  near  Winter  Quarters  in  readiness  for  the 
march  to  Salt  Lake  Valley,  and  said  to  the  Saints  in  Europe : 
"  Emigrate  as  speedily  as  possible  to  this  vicinity.  Those  who 
have  but  little  means,  and  little  or  no  labor,  will  soon  exhaust  that 
means  if  they  remain  where  they  are.  Therefore,  it  is  wisdom 
that  they  remove  without  delay ;  for  here  is  land  on  which,  by 
their  labor,  they  can  speedily  better  their  condition  for  their  fur- 
ther journey."  The  list  of  things  which  Young  advised  the  emi- 
grants to  bring  with  them  embraced  a  wide  assortment :  grains, 
trees,  and  vines ;  live  stock  and  fowls ;  agricultural  implements 
and  mills ;  firearms  and  ammunition ;  gold  and  silver  and  zinc 
and  tin  and  brass  and  ivory  and  precious  stones ;  curiosities, 
"sweet  instruments  of  music,  sweet  odors,  and  beautiful  colors." 
The  care  of  the  head  of  the  church,  that  the  immigrants  should 
not  neglect  to  provide  themselves  with  cologne  and  rouge  for  use 
in  crossing  the  prairies,  was  most  thoughtful. 

The  Millennial  Star  of  February  1,  1848,  made  this  announce- 
ment to  the  faithful  in  the  British  Isles  :  — 

"  The  channel  of  Saints1  emigration  to  the  land  of  Zion  is  now  opened.  The 
resting  place  of  Israel  for  the  last  days  has  been  discovered.    In  the  elevated  val- 

1  See  Linforth's  "  Route,"  pp.  2-5.  2  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  X,  p.  Si. 


IS 


\, 


414  THE   STORY   OF  THE   MORMONS 

ley  of  the  Salt  and  Utah  Lakes,  with  the  beautiful  river  Jordan  running  through 
it,  is  the  newly  established  Stake  of  Zion.  There  vegetation  flourishes  with 
magic  rapidity.  And  the  food  of  man,  or  staff  of  life,  leaps  into  maturity  from 
the  bowels  of  Mother  Earth  with  astonishing  celerity.  Within  one  month  from 
planting,  potatoes  grew  from  six  to  eight  inches,  and  corn  from  two  to  four  feet. 
There  the  frequent  clouds  introduce  their  fertilizing  contents  at  a  modest  distance 
from  the  fat  valley,  and  send  their  humid  influences  from  the  mountain  tops. 
There  the  saline  atmosphere  of  Salt  Lake  mingles  in  wedlock  with  the  fresh  hu- 
midity of  the  same  vegetable  element  which  comes  over  the  mountain  top,  as  if 
the  nuptial  bonds  of  rare  elements  were  introduced  to  exhibit  a  novel  specimen 
of  a  perfect  vegetable  progeny  in  the  shortest  possible  time,"  etc. 

Contrast  this  with  Brigham  Young's  letter  to  Colonel  Alex- 
ander in  October,  1857,  —  "We  had  hoped  that  in  this  barren, 
desolate  country  we  could  have  remained  unmolested." 

On  the  20th  of  February,  1848,  the  shipment  of  Mormon 
emigrants  began  again  with  the  sailing  of  the  Cornatic,  with  120 
passengers,  for  New  Orleans. 

In  the  following  April,  Orson  Pratt  was  sent  to  England  to 
take  charge  of  the  affairs  of  the  church  there.  On  his  arrival,  in 
August,  he  issued  an  "  Epistle  which  was  influential  in  augment- 
ing the  movement.  He  said  that  "  in  the  solitary  valleys  of  the 
great  interior  "  they  hoped  to  hide  "  while  the  indignation  of  the 
Almighty  is  poured  upon  the  nations"  ;  and  urged  the  rich  to  dis- 
pose of  their  property  in  order  to  help  the  poor,  commanding  all 
who  could  do  so  to  pay  their  tithing.  "  O  ye  saints  of  the  Most 
High,"  he  said,  "  linger  not !  Make  good  your  retreat  before  the 
avenues  are  closed  up  !  " 

Many  other  letters  were  published  in  the  Millennial  Star  in 
1 848-1 849,  giving  glowing  accounts  of  the  fertility  of  Salt  Lake 
Valley.  One  from  the  clerk  of  the  camp  observed  :  "  Many  cases 
of  twins.  In  a  row  of  seven  houses  joining  each  other  eight  births 
in  one  week." 

In  order  to  assist  the  poor  converts  in  Europe,  the  General 
Conference  held  in  Salt  Lake  City  in  October,  1849,  voted  to  raise 
a  fund,  to  be  called  "The  Perpetual  Emigrating  Fund,"  and  soon 
$5000  had  been  secured  for  this  purpose.  In  September,  1850,  the 
General  Assembly  of  the  Provisional  State  of  Deseret  incorporated 
the  Perpetual  Emigration  Fund  Company,  and  Brigham  Young  was 
elected  its  first  president.  Collections  for  this  fund  in  Great  Brit- 
ain amounted  to  ^1410  by  January,  1852,  and  the  emigrants  sent 


THE   FOREIGN    IMMIGRATION   TO   UTAH  415 

out  in  that  year  were  assisted  from  this  fund.  These  expenditures 
required  an  additional  $5000,  which  was  supplied  from  Salt  Lake 
City.  A  letter  issued  by  the  First  Presidency  in  October,  1849, 
urged  the  utmost  economy  in  the  expenditure  of  this  money,  and 
explained  that,  when  the  assisted  emigrants  arrived  in  Salt  Lake 
City,  they  would  give  their  obligations  to  the  church  to  refund 
as  soon  as  possible  what  had  been  expended  on  them.1  In  this 
way,  any  who  were  dissatisfied  on  their  arrival  in  Utah  found 
themselves  in  the  church  clutches,  from  which  they  could  not 
escape. 

There  were  outbreaks  of  cholera  among  the  emigrant  parties 
crossing  the  plains  in  1849,  and  many  deaths. 

In  October,  1849,  an  important  company  left  Salt  Lake  City  to 
augment  the  list  of  missionaries  in  Europe.  It  included  John 
Taylor  and  two  others,  assigned  to  France;  Lorenzo  Snow  and 
one  other,  to  Italy ;  Erastus  Snow  and  one  other,  to  Denmark ; 2 
F.  D.  Richards  and  eight  others,  to  England ;  and  J.  Fosgreene,  to 
Sweden. 

The  system  of  Mormon  emigration  from  Great  Britain  at  that 
time  seems  to  have  been  in  the  main  a  good  one.  The  rule  of  the 
agent  in  Liverpool  was  not  to  charter  a  vessel  until  enough  pas- 
sengers had  made  their  deposits  to  warrant  him  in  doing  so.  The 
rate  of  fare  depended  on  the  price  paid  for  the  charter.3  As  soon 
as  the  passengers  arrived  in  Liverpool  they  could  go  on  board  ship, 
and,  when  enough  came  from  one  district,  all  sailed  on  one  vessel. 
Once  on  board,  they  were  organized  with  a  president  and  two 
counsellors,  —  men  who  had  crossed  the  ocean,  if  possible, — who 
allotted  the  staterooms,  appointed  watchmen  to  serve  in  turn,  and 
looked  after  the  sanitary  arrangements.  When  the  first  through 
passengers  for  Salt  Lake  City  left  Liverpool,  in  1852,  an  experi- 
enced elder  was  sent  in  advance  to  have  teams  and  supplies  in 
readiness  at  the  point  where  the  land  journey  would  begin,  and 
other  men  of  experience  accompanied  them  to  engage  river  trans- 

1  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XII,  p.  124. 

2  Elder  Dykes  reported  in  October,  1851,  that,  on  his  arrival  in  Aalborg,  Denmark, 
he  found  that  a  mob  had  broken  in  the  windows  of  the  Saints'  meeting-house  and 
destroyed  the  furniture,  and  had  also  broken  the  windows  of  the  Saints'  houses,  and,  by 
the  mayor's  advice,  he  left  the  city  by  the  first  steamer.  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XIII, 
p.  346. 

3  See  Linforth's  "Route,"  pp.  10,  17-22;  Mackay's  "History  of  the  Mormons," 
pp.  298-302;    Pratt's  letter  to  the  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XI,  p.  277. 


416 


THE    STORY    OF   THE   MORMONS 


portation   when    they  reached    New    Orleans.      The  statistics  of 
the  emigration  thus  called  out  were  as  follows  :  — 


Year 

Vessels 

Emigrants 

5 

754 

9 

2078 

6 

1612 

4 

1869 

The  Frontier  Guardian  at  Kanesville  estimated  the  Mormon 
movement  across  the  plains  in  1850  at  about  700  wagons,  taking 
5000  horses  and  cattle  and  4000  sheep. 

Of  the  class  of  emigrants  then  going  out,  the  manager  of  the 
leading  shipping  agents  at  Liverpool  who  furnished  the  ships 
said,  "They  are  principally  farmers  and  mechanics,  with  some 
few  clerks,  surgeons,  and  so  forth."  He  found  on  the  company's 
books,  for  the  period  between  October,  1849,  and  March,  1850,  the 
names  of  16  miners,  20  engineers,  19  farmers,  108  laborers, 
10  joiners,  25  weavers,  15  shoemakers,  12  smiths,  19  tailors,  8 
watchmakers,  25  stone  masons,  5  butchers,  4  bakers,  4  potters, 
10  painters,  7  shipwrights,  and  5  dyers. 

The  statistics  of  the  Mormon  emigration  given  by  the  British 
agency  for  the  years  named  were  as  follows :  — 


Year 


1852 

1853 

1854 / 

1852  1854,    Scandinavian    and    German    via 

Liverpool  

1855 


In  1853  the  experiment  was  made  of  engaging  to  send  adults 
from  Liverpool  to  Utah  for  jQio  each  and  children  for  half  price ; 
but  this  did  not  succeed,  and  those  who  embraced  the  offer  had  to 
borrow  money  or  teams  to  complete  the  journey. 

In   1853,  owing  to  extortions    practised  on  the   emigrants  by 


THE   FOREIGN   IMMIGRATION   TO   UTAH  417 

the  merchants  and  traders  at  Kanesville,  as  well  as  the  un health- 
fulness  of  the  Missouri  bottoms,  the  principal  point  of  departure 
from  the  river  was  changed  to  Keokuk,  Iowa.  The  authorities 
and  people  there  showed  the  new-comers  every  kindness,  and  set 
apart  a  plot  of  ground  for  their  camp.  In  this  camp  each  com- 
pany on  its  arrival  was  organized  and  provided  with  the  necessary 
teams,  etc.  In  1854  the  point  of  departure  was  again  changed  to 
Kansas,  in  western  Missouri,  fourteen  miles  west  of  Independence, 
the  route  then  running  to  the  Big  Blue  River,  and  through  what 
are  now  the  states  of  Kansas  and  Nebraska. 


CHAPTER   IV 
THE   HAND-CART  TRAGEDY 

In  1855  the  crops  in  Utah  were  almost  a  failure,  and  the  church 
authorities  found  themselves  very  much  embarrassed  by  their  debts. 
A  report  in  the  seventh  General  Epistle,  of  April  18,  1852,  set  forth 
that,  from  their  entry  into  the  valley  to  March  27,  of  that  year, 
there  had  been  received  as  tithing,  mostly  in  property,  $244,747.03, 
and  in  loans  and  from  other  sources  $145,513.78,  of  which  total 
there  had  been  expended  in  assisting  immigrants  and  on  church 
buildings,  city  lots,  manufacturing  industries,  etc.,  $353,765.69. 
Young  found  it  necessary  therefore  to  cut  down  his  expenses,  and 
he  looked  around  for  a  method  of  doing  this  without  checking  the 
stream  of  new-comers.  The  method  which  he  evolved  was  to  fur- 
nish the  immigrants  with  hand-carts  on  their  arrival  in  Iowa,  and 
to  let  them  walk  all  the  way  across  the  plains,  taking  with  them 
only  such  effects  as  these  carts  would  hold,  each  party  of  ten  to 
drive  with  them  one  or  two  cows. 

Although  Young  tried  to  throw  the  result  of  this  experiment 
on  others,  the  evidence  is  conclusive  that  he  devised  it  and  worked 
out  its  details.  In  a  letter  to  Elder  F.  D.  Richards,  in  Liverpool, 
dated  September  30,  1855,  Young  said:  "We  cannot  afford  to  pur- 
chase wagons  and  teams  as  in  times  past.  I  am  consequently 
thrown  back  upon  my  old  plan  —  to  make  hand-carts,  and  let  the 
emigration  foot  it."  To  show  what  a  pleasant  trip  this  would 
make,  this  head  of  the  church,  who  had  three  times  crossed  the 
plains,  added,  "  Fifteen  miles  a  day  will  bring  them  through  in 
70  days,  and,  after  they  get  accustomed  to  it,  they  will  travel  20, 
25,  or  even  30  with  all  ease,  and  no  danger  of  giving  out,  but  will 
continue  to  get  stronger  and  stronger ;  the  little  ones  and  sick,  if 
there  are  any,  can  be  carried  on  the  carts,  but  there  will  be  none 
sick  in  a  little  time  after  they  get  started." 1 

1  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  VII,  p.  813. 
418 


THE    HAND-CART   TRAGEDY  419 

Directions  in  accordance  with  this  plan  were  issued  in  the  form 
of  a  circular  in  Liverpool  in  February,  1856,  naming  Iowa  City, 
Iowa,  as  the  point  of  outfit.  The  charge  for  booking  through  to 
Utah  by  the  Perpetual  Emigration  Fund  Company  was  fixed  at 
j£g  for  all  over  one  year  old,  and  £4  10s.  for  younger  infants. 
The  use  of  trunks  or  boxes  was  discouraged,  and  the  emigrants 
were  urged  to  provide  themselves  with  oil-cloth  or  mackintosh 
bags. 

About  thirteen  hundred  persons  left  Liverpool  to  undertake 
this  foot  journey  across  the  plains,  placing  implicit  faith  in  the 
pictures  of  Salt  Lake  Valley  drawn  by  the  missionaries,  and  not 
doubting  that  the  method  of  travel  would  be  as  enjoyable  as  it 
seemed  economical.  Five  separate  companies  were  started  that 
summer  from  Iowa  City.  The  first  and  second  of  these  arrived  at 
Florence,  Nebraska,  on  July  17,  the  third,  made  up  mostly  of 
Welsh,  on  July  19,  and  the  fourth  on  August  11.  The  first  com- 
pany made  the  trip  to  Utah  without  anything  more  serious  to  report 
than  the  necessary  discomforts  of  such  a  march,  and  were  received 
with  great  acclaim  by  the  church  authorities,  and  welcomed  with 
an  elaborate  procession.  It  was  the  last  companies  whose  story 
became  a  tragedy.1 

The  immigrants  met  with  their  first  disappointment  on  arriving 
at  Iowa  City.  Instead  of  finding  their  carts  ready  for  them,  they 
were  told  that  no  advance  agent  had  prepared  the  way.  The  last 
companies  were  subjected  to  the  most  delay  from  this  cause.  Even 
the  carts  were  still  to  be  manufactured,  and,  while  they  were  mak- 
ing, many  a  family  had  to  camp  in  the  open  fields,  without  even 
the  shelter  of  a  tent  or  a  wagon  top.  The  carts,  when  pronounced 
finished,  moved  on  two  light  wheels,  the  only  iron  used  in  their 
construction  being  a  very  thin  tire.  Two  projecting  shafts  of 
hickory  or  oak  were  joined  by  a  cross  piece,  by  means  of  which 
the  owner  propelled  the  vehicle. 

When  Mr.  Chislett's  company,  after  a  three  weeks'  delay,  made 
a  start,  they  were  five  hundred  strong,  comprising  English,  Scotch, 
and  Scandanavians.  They  were  divided,  as  usual,  into  hundreds, 
to  each  hundred  being  allotted  five  tents,  twenty  hand-carts,  and 

1  The  experiences  of  those  companies  were  told  in  detail  by  a  member  of  one,  John 
Chislett,  and  printed  in  the  "  Rocky  Mountain  Saints."  Mrs.  Stenhouse  gives  additional 
experiences  in  her  "  Tell  it  All." 


420  THE   STORY    OF   THE    MORMONS 

one  wagon  drawn  by  three  yokes  of  oxen,  the  latter  carrying  the 
tents  and  provisions.  Families  containing  more  young  men  than 
were  required  to  draw  their  own  carts  shared  these  human  draught 
animals  with  other  families  who  were  not  so  well  provided ;  but 
many  carts  were  pulled  along  by  young  girls. 

The  Iowans  bestowed  on  the  travellers  both  kindness  and  com- 
miseration. Knowing  better  than  did  the  new-comers  from 
Europe  the  trials  that  awaited  them,  they  pointed  out  the  lateness 
of  the  season,  and  they  did  persuade  a  few  members  to  give  up 
the  trip.  But  the  elders  who  were  in  charge  of  the  company  were 
watchful,  the  religious  spirit  was  kept  up  by  daily  meetings,  and 
the  one  command  that  was  constantly  reiterated  was,  "  Obey  your 
leaders  in  all  things." 

A  march  of  four  weeks  over  a  hot,  dusty  route  was  required  to 
bring  them  to  the  Missouri  River  near  Florence.  Even  there  they 
were  insufficiently  supplied  with  food.  With  flour  costing  $3  per 
hundred  pounds,  and  bacon  seven  or  eight  cents  a  pound,  the  daily 
allowance  of  food  was  ten  ounces  of  flour  to  each  adult,  and  four 
ounces  to  children  under  eight  years  old,  with  bacon,  coffee,  sugar, 
and  rice  served  occasionally.  Some  of  the  men  ate  all  their  allow- 
ance for  the  day  at  their  breakfast,  and  depended  on  the  generosity 
of  settlers  on  the  way,  while  there  were  any,  for  what  further  food 
they  had  until  the  next  morning. 

After  a  week's  stay  at  Florence  (the  old  Winter  Quarters),  the 
march  across  the  plains  was  resumed  on  August  18.  The  danger 
of  making  this  trip  so  late  in  the  season,  with  a  company  which 
included  many  women,  children,  and  aged  persons,  gave  even  the 
elders  pause,  and  a  meeting  was  held  to  discuss  the  matter.  But 
Levi  Savage,  who  had  made  the  trip  to  and  from  the  valley,  alone 
advised  against  continuing  the  march  that  season.  The  others 
urged  the  company  to  go  on,  declaring  that  they  were  God's  people, 
and  prophesying  in  His  name  that  they  would  get  through  the 
mountains  in  safety.  The  emigrants,  "simple,  honest,  eager  to 
go  to  Zion  at  once,  and  obedient  as  little  children  to  the  '  servants 
of  God,'  voted  to  proceed."  1 

1  A  "  bond,"  which  each  assisted  emigrant  was  required  to  sign  in  Liverpool,  contained 
the  following  stipulations :  "  We  do  severally  and  jointly  promise  and  bind  ourselves  to  con- 
tinue with  and  obey  the  instructions  of  the  agent  appointed  to  superintend  our  passage 
thither  to  [Utah].     And  that,  on  our  arrival  in  Utah,  we  will  hold  ourselves,  our  time, 


THE   HAND-CART   TRAGEDY  421 

As  the  teams  provided  could  not  haul  enough  flour  to  last  the 
company  to  Utah,  a  sack  weighing  ninety-eight  pounds  was  added 
to  the  load  of  each  cart.  One  pound  of  flour  a  day  was  now 
allowed  to  each  adult,  and  occasionally  fresh  beef.  Soon  after 
leaving  Florence  trouble  began  with  the  carts.  The  sand  of  the 
dry  prairie  got  into  the  wooden  hubs  and  ground  the  axles  so  that 
they  broke,  and  constant  delays  were  caused  by  the  necessity  of 
making  repairs.  No  axle  grease  had  been  provided,  and  some 
of  the  company  were  compelled  to  use  their  precious  allowance  of 
bacon  to  grease  the  wheels.  At  Wood  River,  where  the  plains 
were  alive  with  buffaloes,  a  stampede  of  the  cattle  occurred  one 
night,  and  thirty  of  them  were  never  recovered.  The  one  yoke 
of  oxen  that  was  left  to  each  wagon  could  not  pull  the  load ;  an 
attempt  to  use  the  milch  cows  and  heifers  as  draught  animals 
failed,  and  the  tired  cart  pullers  had  to  load  up  again  with  flour. 

While  pursuing  their  journey  in  this  manner,  their  camp  was 
visited  one  evening  by  Apostle  F.  D.  Richards  and  some  other 
elders,  on  their  way  to  Utah  from  mission  work  abroad.  Richards 
severely  rebuked  Savage  for  advising  that  the  trip  be  given  up  at 
Florence,  and  prophesied  that  the  Lord  would  keep  open  a  way 
before  them.  The  missionaries,  who  were  provided  with  carriages 
drawn  by  four  horses  each,  drove  on,  without  waiting  to  see  this 
prediction  confirmed. 

On  arriving  at  Fort  Laramie,  about  the  first  of  September, 
another  evidence  of  the  culpable  neglect  of  the  church  authorities 
manifested  itself.  The  supply  of  provisions  that  was  to  have 
awaited  them  there  was  wanting.  They  calculated  the  amount 
that  they  had  on  hand,  and  estimated  that  it  would  last  only  until 
they  were  within  350  miles  of  Salt  Lake  City ;  but,  perhaps  mak- 
ing the  best  of  the  situation,  they  voted  to  reduce  the  daily  ration 
and  to  try  to  make  the  supply  last  by  travelling  faster.  When 
they  reached  the  neighborhood  of  Independence  Rock,  a  letter 
sent  back  by  Richards  informed  them  that  supplies  would  meet 
them  at  South  Pass ;  but  another  calculation  showed  that  what 
remained  would  not  last  them  to  the  Pass,  and  again  the  ration 
was  reduced,  working  men  now  receiving  twelve  ounces  a  day, 
other  adults  nine,  and  children  from  four  to  eight. 

and  our  labor,  subject  to  the  appropriation  of  the  Perpetual  Emigration  Fund  Company 
until  the  full  cost  of  our  emigration  is  paid,  with  interest  if  required." 


422  THE   STORY   OF   THE    MORMONS 

Another  source  of  discomfort  now  manifested  itself.  In  order 
to  accommodate  matters  to  the  capacity  of  the  carts,  the  elders  in 
charge  had  made  it  one  of  the  rules  that  each  outfit  should  be 
limited  to  seventeen  pounds  of  clothing  and  bedding.  As  they 
advanced  up  the  Sweetwater  it  became  cold.  The  mountains 
appeared  snow-covered,  and  the  lack  of  extra  wraps  and  bedding 
caused  first  discomfort,  and  then  intense  suffering,  to  the  half-fed 
travellers.  The  necessity  of  frequently  wading  the  Sweetwater 
chilled  the  stronger  men  who  were  bearing  the  brunt  of  the  labor, 
and  when  morning  dawned  the  occupants  of  the  tents  found 
themselves  numb  with  the  cold,  and  quite  unfitted  to  endure  the 
hardships  of  the  coming  day.  Chislett  draws  this  picture  of  the 
situation  at  that  time :  — 

"Our  old  and  infirm  people  began  to  droop,  and  they  no  sooner  lost  spirit 
and  courage  than  death's  stamp  could  be  traced  upon  their  features.  Life  went 
out  as  smoothly  as  a  lamp  ceases  to  burn  when  the  oil  is  gone.  At  first  the  deaths 
occurred  slowly  and  irregularly,  but  in  a  few  days  at  more  frequent  intervals,  until 
we  soon  thought  it  unusual  to  leave  a  camp  ground  without  burying  one  or  more 
persons.  Death  was  not  long  confined  in  its  ravages  to  the  old  and  infirm,  but 
the  young  and  naturally  strong  were  among  its  victims.  Weakness  and  debility 
were  accompanied  by  dysentery.  This  we  could  not  stop  or  even  alleviate,  no 
proper  medicines  being  in  the  camp ;  and  in  almost  every  instance  it  carried  off 
the  parties  attacked.  It  was  surprising  to  an  unmarried  man  to  witness  the  devo- 
tion of  men  to  their  families  and  to  their  faith  under  these  trying  circumstances. 
Many  a  father  pulled  his  cart,  with  his  little  children  on  it,  until  the  day  preced- 
ing his  death.     These  people  died  with  the  calm  faith  and  fortitude  of  martyrs." 

An  Oregonian  returning  East,  who  met  two  of  the  more  fortu- 
nate of  these  hand-cart  parties,  gave  this  description  to  the  Huron 
(Ohio)  Reflector  in  1857 :  — 

u  It  was  certainly  the  most  novel  and  interesting  sight  I  have  seen  for  many 
a  day.  We  met  two  trains,  one  of  thirty  and  the  other  of  fifty  carts,  averaging 
about  six  to  the  cart.  The  carts  were  generally  drawn  by  one  man  and  three 
women  each,  though  some  carts  were  drawn  by  women  alone.  There  were  about 
three  women  to  one  man,  and  two-thirds  of  the  women  single.  It  was  the  most 
motley  crew  I  ever  beheld.  Most  of  them  were  Danes,  with  a  sprinkling  of 
Welsh,  Swedes,  and  English,  and  were  generally  from  the  lower  classes  of  their 
countries.  Most  could  not  understand  what  we  said  to  them.  The  road  was 
lined  for  a  mile  behind  the  train  with  the  lame,  halt,  sick,  and  needy.  Many 
were  quite  aged,  and  would  be  going  slowly  along,  supported  by  a  son  or  daughter. 
Some  were  on  crutches  ;  now  and  then  a  mother  with  a  child  in  her  arms  and  two 


THE   HAND-CART  TRAGEDY  423 

or  three  hanging  hold  of  her,  with  a  forlorn  appearance,  would  pass  slowly  along; 
others,  whose  condition  entitled  them  to  a  seat  in  a  carriage,  were  wending  their 
way  through  the  sand.     A  few  seemed  in  good  spirits.11 

The  belated  company  did  not  meet  any  one  to  carry  word  of 
their  condition  to  the  valley,  but  among  Richard's  party  who 
visited  the  camp  at  Wood  River  was  Brigham  Young's  son,  Joseph 
A.  He  realized  the  plight  of  the  travellers,  and  when  his  father 
heard  his  report  he  too  recognized  the  fact  that  aid  must  be  sent  at 
once.  The  son  was  directed  to  get  together  all  the  supplies  he  could 
obtain  in  the  city  or  pick  up  on  the  way,  and  to  start  toward  the 
East  immediately.  Driving  on  himself  in  a  light  wagon,  he  reached 
the  advanced  line,  as  they  were  toiling  ahead  through  their  first 
snowstorm.  The  provisions  travelled  slower,  and  could  not  reach 
them  in  less  than  one  or  two  days  longer.  There  was  encourage- 
ment, of  course,  even  in  the  prospect  of  release,  but  encouragement 
could  not  save  those  whose  vitality  was  already  exhausted.  Camp 
was  pitched  that  night  among  a  grove  of  willows,  where  good  fires 
were  possible,  but  in  the  morning  they  awoke  to  find  the  snow  a 
foot  deep,  and  that  five  of  their  companions  had  been  added  to  the 
death  list  during  the  night. 

To  add  to  the  desperate  character  of  the  situation  came  the 
announcement  that  the  provisions  were  practically  exhausted,  the 
last  of  the  flour  having  been  given  out,  and  all  that  remained  being 
a  few  dried  apples,  a  little  rice  and  sugar,  and  about  twenty-five 
pounds  of  hardtack.  Two  of  the  cattle  were  killed,  and  the  camp 
were  informed  that  they  would  have  to  subsist  on  the  supplies  in 
sight  until  aid  reached  them.  The  best  thing  to  do  in  these  cir- 
cumstances, indeed,  the  only  thing,  was  to  remain  where  they  were 
and  send  messengers  to  advise  the  succoring  party  of  the  desper- 
ateness  of  their  case.  Their  captain,  Mr.  Willie,  and  one  com- 
panion acted  as  their  messengers.  They  were  gone  three  days, 
and  in  their  absence  Mr.  Chislett  had  the  painful  duty  of  doling 
out  what  little  food  there  was  in  camp.  He  speaks  of  his  task  as 
one  that  unmanned  him.  More  cattle  were  killed,  but  beef  with- 
out other  food  did  not  satisfy  the  hungry,  and  the  epidemic  of 
dysentery  grew  worse.  The  commissary  officer  was  surrounded 
by  a  crowd  of  men  and  women  imploring  him  for  a  little  food,  and 
it  required  all  his  power  of  reasoning  to  make  them  see  that  what 
little  was  left  must  be  saved  for  the  sick. 


424  THE   STORY   OF  THE   MORMONS 

The  party  with  aid  from  the  valley  had  also  encountered  the 
snowstorm,  and,  not  appreciating  the  desperate  condition  of  the 
hand-cart  immigrants,  had  halted  to  wait  for  better  weather.  As 
soon  as  Captain  Willie  took  them  the  news,  they  hastened  east- 
ward, and  were  seen  by  the  starving  party  at  sunset,  the  third  day 
after  their  captain's  departure.  "  Shouts  of  joy  rent  the  air,"  says 
Chislett.  "  Strong  men  wept  till  tears  ran  freely  down  their  fur- 
rowed and  sunburnt  cheeks,  and  little  children  partook  of  the  joy 
which  some  of  them  hardly  understood,  and  fairly  danced  around 
with  gladness.  Restraint  was  set  aside  in  the  general  rejoicing, 
and,  as  the  brethren  entered  our  camp,  the  sisters  fell  upon  them 
and  deluged  them  with  kisses." 

The  timely  relief  saved  many  lives,  but  the  end  of  the  suffering 
had  not  been  reached.  A  good  many  of  the  foot  party  were  so 
exhausted  by  what  they  had  gone  through,  that  even  their  near 
approach  to  their  Zion  and  their  prophet  did  not  stimulate  them 
to  make  the  effort  to  complete  the  journey.  Some  trudged  along, 
unable  even  to  pull  a  cart,  and  those  who  were  still  weaker  were 
given  places  in  the  wagons.  It  grew  colder,  too,  and  frozen  hands 
and  feet  became  a  common  experience.  Thus  each  day  lessened 
by  a  few  who  were  buried  the  number  that  remained. 

Then  came  another  snowstorm.  What  this  meant  to  a  weak- 
ened party  like  this  dragging  their  few  possessions  in  carts  can 
easily  be  imagined.  One  family  after  another  would  find  that 
they  could  not  make  further  progress,  and  when  a  hill  was  reached 
the  human  teams  would  have  to  be  doubled  up.  In  this  way, 
by  travelling  backward  and  forward,  some  progress  was  made. 
That  day's  march  was  marked  by  constant  additions  to  the  strag- 
glers who  kept  dropping  by  the  way.  When  the  main  body  had 
made  their  camp  for  the  night,  some  of  the  best  teams  were  sent 
back  for  those  who  had  dropped  behind,  and  it  was  early  morning 
before  all  of  these  were  brought  in. 

The  next  morning  Captain  Willie  was  assigned  to  take  count 
of  the  dead.  An  examination  of  the  camp  showed  thirteen  corpses, 
all  stiffly  frozen.  They  were  buried  in  a  large  square  hole,  three 
or  four  abreast  and  three  deep.  "  When  they  did  not  fit  in,"  says 
Chislett,  "  we  put  one  or  two  crosswise  at  the  head  or  feet  of  the 
others.  We  covered  them  with  willows  and  then  with  the  earth." 
Two  other  victims  were  buried  before  nightfall.     Parties  passing 


THE    HAND-CART   TRAGEDY  425 

eastward  by  this  place  the  following  summer  found  that  the  wolves 
had  speedily  uncovered  the  corpses,  and  that  their  bones  were 
scattered  all  over  the  neighborhood. 

Further  deaths  continued  every  day  until  they  arrived  at  South 
Pass.  There  more  assistance  from  the  valley  met  them,  the 
weather  became  warmer,  and  the  health  of  the  party  improved,  so 
that  when  they  arrived  at  Salt  Lake  City  they  were  in  better  con- 
dition and  spirits.  The  date  of  their  arrival  there  was  November  9. 
The  company  which  set  out  from  Iowa  City  numbered  about  500, 
of  whom  400  set  out  from  Florence  across  the  plains.  Of  these 
400,  67  died  on  the  way,  and  there  were  a  few  deaths  after  they 
reached  the  end  of  their  journey. 

Another  company  of  these  hand-cart  travellers  left  Florence 
still  later  than  the  ones  whose  sufferings  have  been  described.  They 
were  in  charge  of  an  elder  named  Martin.  Like  their  predeces- 
sors, they  were  warned  against  setting  out  so  late  as  the  middle  of 
August,  and  many  of  them  tried  to  give  up  the  trip,  but  permission 
to  do  so  was  refused.  Their  sufferings  began  soon  after  they 
crossed  the  Platte,  near  Fort  Laramie,  and  snow  was  encountered 
sixty  miles  east  of  Devil's  Gate.  When  they  reached  that  land- 
mark, they  decided  that  they  could  make  no  further  progress  with 
their  hand-carts.  They  accordingly  took  possession  of  half  a 
dozen  dilapidated  log  houses,  the  contents  of  the  wagons  were 
placed  in  some  of  these,  the  hand-carts  were  left  behind,  and  as 
many  people  as  the  teams  could  drag  were  placed  in  the  wagons 
and  started  forward.  One  of  the  survivors  of  this  party  has  writ- 
ten:  "The  track  of  the  emigrants  was  marked  by  graves,  and 
many  of  the  living  suffered  almost  worse  than  death.  Men  may 
be  seen  to-day  in  Salt  Lake  City,  who  were  boys  then,  hobbling 
around  on  their  club-feet,  all  their  toes  having  been  frozen  off  in 
that  fearful  march."  1  Twenty  men  who  were  left  at  Devil's  Gate 
had  a  terrible  experience,  being  compelled,  before  assistance 
reached  them,  to  eat  even  the  pieces  of  hide  wrapped  round  their 
cart-wheels,  and  a  piece  of  buffalo  skin  that  had  been  used  as  a 
door-mat.  Strange  to  say,  all  of  these  men  reached  the  valley 
alive. 

We  have  seen  that  Brigham  Young  was  the  inventor  of  this 
hand-cart  immigration  scheme.     Alarmed  by  the  result  of  the  ex- 

1  "  Rocky  Mountain  Saints,"  p.  337. 


426  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

periment,  as  soon  as  the  wretched  remnant  of  the  last  two  parties 
arrived  in  Salt  Lake  City,  he  took  steps  to  place  the  responsibility 
for  the  disaster  on  other  shoulders.  The  idea  which  he  carried 
out  was  to  shift  the  blame  to  F.  D.  Richards  on  the  ground  that 
he  allowed  the  immigrants  to  start  too  late.  In  an  address  in  the 
Tabernacle,  while  Captain  Willie's  party  was  approaching  the 
city,  he  told  the  returned  missionaries  from  England  that  they 
needed  to  be  careful  about  eulogizing  Richards  and  Spencer,  lest 
they  should  have  "the  big  head."  When  these  men  were  in  Salt 
Lake  City  he  cursed  them  with  the  curse  of  the  church.  E.  W. 
Tullidge,  who  was  an  editor  of  the  Millennial  Star  in  Liverpool 
under  Richards  when  the  hand-cart  emigrants  were  collected,  pro- 
posed, when  in  later  years  he  was  editing  the  Utah  Magazine,  to 
tell  the  facts  about  that  matter  ;  but  when  Young  learned  this,  he 
ordered  Godbe,  the  controlling  owner  of  the  magazine,  to  destroy 
that  issue,  after  one  side  of  the  sheets  had  been  printed,  and  he 
was  obeyed.1  Fortunately  Young  was  not  able  to  destroy  the 
files  of  the  Millennial  Star. 

There  is  much  that  is  thoroughly  typical  of  Mormonism  in  the 
history  of  these  expeditions.  No  converts  were  ever  instilled  with 
a  more  confident  belief  in  the  divine  character  of  the  ridiculous 
pretender,  Joseph  Smith.  To  no  persons  were  more  flagrant  mis- 
representations ever  made  by  the  heads  of  the  church,  and  over 
none  was  the  dictatorial  authority  of  the  church  exercised  more 
remorselessly.  Not  only  was  Utah  held  out  to  them  as  "  a  land 
where  honest  labor  and  industry  meet  with  a  suitable  reward,  and 
where  the  higher  walks  of  life  are  open  to  the  humblest  and  poor- 
est,"2 but  they  were  informed  that,  if  they  had  not  faith  enough 
to  undertake  the  trip  to  Utah,  they  had  not  "  faith  sufficient  to 
endure,  with  the  Saints  in  Zion,  the  celestial  law  which  leads  to 
exaltation  and  eternal  life."  Young  wrote  to  Richards  privately 
in  October,  1855,  "Adhere  strictly  to  our  former  suggestion  of 
walking  them  through  across  the  plains  with  hand-carts";3  and 
Richards  in  an  editorial  in  the  Star  thereupon  warned  the  Saints : 
"  The  destroying  angel  is  abroad.  Pestilence  and  gaunt  famine 
will  soon  increase  the  terrors  of  the  scene  to  an  extent  as  yet 

1  "  Rocky  Mountain  Saints,"  p.  342. 

2  Thirteenth  General  Epistle,  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XVIII,  p.  49. 
8  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XVIII,  p.  61. 


THE   HAND-CART  TRAGEDY  427 

without  a  parallel  in  the  records  of  the  human  race.  If  the  an- 
ticipated toils  of  the  journey  shake  your  faith  in  the  promises  of 
the  Lord,  it  is  high  time  that  you  were  digging  about  the  founda- 
tion of  it,  and  seeing  if  it  be  founded  on  the  root  of  the  Holy 
Priesthood,"  etc. 

The  direct  effect  of  such  teaching  is  shown  in  two  letters 
printed  in  the  Millennial  Star  of  June  14,  1856.  In  the  first  of 
these,  a  sister,  writing  to  her  brother  in  Liverpool  from  Williams- 
burg, New  York,  confesses  her  surprise  on  learning  that  the  jour- 
ney was  to  be  made  with  hand-carts,  says  that  their  mother  cannot 
survive  such  a  trip,  and  that  she  does  not  think  the  girls  can,  points 
out  that  the  limitation  regarding  baggage  would  compel  them  to 
sell  nearly  all  their  clothes,  and  proposes  that  they  wait  in  New 
York  or  St.  Louis  until  they  could  procure  a  wagon.  In  his  reply 
the  brother  scorns  this  advice,  says  that  he  would  not  stop  in  New 
York  if  he  were  offered  ^10,000  besides  his  expenses,  and  adds  : 
"  Brothers,  sisters,  fathers  or  mothers,  when  they  put  a  stumbling 
block  in  the  way  of  my  salvation,  are  nothing  more  to  me  than  Gen- 
tiles. As  for  me  and  my  house,  we  will  serve  the  Lord,  and  when 
we  start  we  will  go  right  up  to  Zion,  if  we  go  ragged  and  barefoot." 

Young  found  himself  hard  put  to  meet  the  church  obligations 
in  1856,  notwithstanding  the  economy  of  the  hand-cart  system  ;  and 
the  Millennial  Star  of  December  27  announced  that  no  assisted  emi- 
grants would  be  sent  out  during  the  following  year.  Saints  pro- 
posing to  go  through  at  their  own  expense  were  informed,  however, 
that  the  church  bureau  would  supply  them  with  teams.  Those  pro- 
posing to  use  hand-carts  were  told  of  the  "  indispensable  necessity  " 
of  having  their  whole  outfit  ready  on  their  arrival  at  Iowa  City,  and 
the  bureau  offered  to  supply  this  at  an  estimated  cost  of  £3  per 
head,  any  deficit  to  be  made  up  on  their  arrival  there.1 

1  "  The  agency  of  the  Mormon  emigration  at  that  time  was  a  very  profitable  appoint- 
ment. By  arrangement  with  ship  brokers  at  Liverpool,  a  commission  of  half  a  guinea 
per  head  was  allowed  the  agent  for  every  adult  emigrant  that  he  sent  across  the  Atlan- 
tic, and  the  railroad  companies  in  New  York  allowed  a  percentage  on  every  emigrant 
ticket.  But  a  still  larger  revenue  was  derived  from  the  outfitting  on  the  frontiers.  The 
agents  purchased  all  the  cattle,  wagons,  tents,  wagon-covers,  flour,  cooking  utensils, 
stoves,  and  the  staple  articles  for  a  three  months'  journey  across  the  Plains,  and  from 
them  the  Saints  supplied  themselves."  —  "  Rocky  Mountain  Saints,"  p.  340. 


CHAPTER  V 
EARLY   POLITICAL   HISTORY 

We  have  seen  that  Joseph  Smith's  desire  was,  when  he  sug- 
gested a  possible  removal  of  the  church  to  the  Far  West,  that  they 
should  have,  not  only  an  undisturbed  place  of  residence,  but  a  gov- 
ernment of  their  own.  This  idea  of  political  independence  Young 
never  lost  sight  of.  Had  Utah  remained  a  distant  province  of  the 
Mexican  government,  the  Mormons  might  have  been  allowed  to 
dwell  there  a  long  time,  practically  without  governmental  control. 
But  when  that  region  passed  under  the  government  of  the  United 
States  by  the  proclamation  of  the  Treaty  of  Guadalupe-Hidalgo,  on 
July  4,  1848,  Brigham  Young  had  to  face  a  new  situation.  He  then 
decided  that  what  he  wanted  was  an  independent  state  government, 
not  territorial  rule  under  the  federal  authorities,  and  he  planned 
accordingly.  Every  device  was  employed  to  increase  the  number 
of  the  Saints  in  Utah,  to  bring  the  population  up  to  the  figure  re- 
quired for  admission  as  a  state,  and  he  encouraged  outlying  settle- 
ments at  every  attractive  point.  In  this  way,  by  185 1,  Ogden  and 
Provo  had  become  large  enough  to  form  Stakes,  and  in  a  few  years 
the  country  around  Salt  Lake  City  was  dotted  with  settlements, 
many  of  them  on  lands  to  which  the  "  Lamanites,"  who  held  so 
deep  a  place  in  Joseph  Smith's  heart,  asserted  in  vain  their  ances- 
tral titles. 

The  first  General  Epistle  sent  out  from  Great  Salt  Lake  City, 
in  1849,  thus  explained  the  first  government  set  up  there,  "  In  con- 
sequence of  Indian  depredations  on  our  horses,  cattle,  and  other 
property,  and  the  wicked  conduct  of  a  few  base  fellows  who  came 
among  the  Saints,  the  inhabitants  of  this  valley,  as  is  common  in 
new  countries  generally,  have  organized  a  temporary  government 
to  exist  during  its  necessity,  or  until  we  can  obtain  a  charter  for  a 
territorial  government,  a  petition  for  which  is  already  in  progress." 

428 


EARLY   POLITICAL  HISTORY  429 

On  March  4,  1849,  a  convention,  to  which  were  invited  all  the 
inhabitants  of  upper  California  east  of  the  Sierra  Nevadas,  was 
held  in  Great  Salt  Lake  City  to  frame  a  system  of  government. 
The  outcome  was  the  adoption  of  a  constitution  for  a  state  to  be 
called  the  State  of  Deseret,  and  the  election  of  a  full  set  of  state 
officers.  The  boundaries  of  this  state  were  liberal.  Starting  at  a 
point  in  what  is  now  New  Mexico,  the  line  was  to  run  down  to  the 
Mexican  border,  then  west  along  the  border  of  lower  California  to 
the  Pacific,  up  the  coast  to  1 1 8°  30'  west  longitude,  north  to  the 
dividing  ridge  of  the  Sierra  Nevadas,  and  along  their  summit  to 
the  divide  between  the  Columbia  River  and  the  Salt  Lake  Basin, 
and  thence  south  to  the  place  of  beginning,  "by  the  dividing  range 
of  mountains  that  separate  the  waters  flowing  into  the  Gulf  of 
Mexico  from  the  waters  flowing  into  the  Gulf  of  California."  The 
constitution  adopted  followed  the  general  form  of  such  instruments 
in  the  United  States.  In  regard  to  religion  it  declared,  "  All  men 
have  a  natural  and  inalienable  right  to  worship  God  according  to 
the  dictates  of  their  own  consciences ;  and  the  General  Assembly 
shall  make  no  law  respecting  an  establishment  of  religion,  or  pro- 
hibiting the  free  exercise  thereof,  or  disturb  any  person  in  his  re- 
ligious worship  or  sentiments."1 

An  epistle  of  the  Twelve  to  Orson  Pratt  in  England,  explain- 
ing this  subject,  said,  "We  have  petitioned  the  Congress  of  the 
United  States  for  the  organization  of  a  territorial  government  here. 
Until  this  petition  is  granted,  we  are  under  the  necessity  of  organ- 
izing a  local  government  for  the  time  being." 2  The  territorial 
government  referred  to  was  that  of  the  State  of  Deseret.  The 
local  government  mentioned  was  organized  on  March  12,  by  the 
election  of  Brigham  Young  as  governor,  H.  C.  Kimball  as  chief 
justice,  John  Taylor  and  N.  K.  Whitney  as  associate  justices,  and 
the  Bishops  of  the  wards  as  city  magistrates,  with  minor  positions 
filled.  Six  hundred  and  seventy-four  votes  were  polled  for  this 
ticket. 

The  General  Assembly,  chosen  later,  met  on  July  2,  and 
adopted  a  memorial  to  Congress  setting  forth  the  failure  of  that 
body  to  provide  any  form  of  government  for  the  territory  ceded 

1  For  text  of  this  constitution  and  the  memorial  to  Congress,  see  Millennial  Stary 
January  15,  1850. 

2  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XI,  p.  244. 


1/ 


430  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

by  Mexico,1  declaring  that  "the  revolver  and  the  bowie  knife  have 
been  the  highest  law  of  the  land,"  and  asking  for  the  admission  of 
the  State  of  Deseret  into  the  Union.  That  same  year  the  Califor- 
nians  framed  a  government  for  themselves,  and  a  plan  was  dis- 
cussed to  consolidate  California  and  Deseret  until  1851,  when  a 
separation  should  take  place.  The  governor  of  California  con- 
demned this  scheme,  and  the  legislature  gave  it  no  countenance. 

The  Mormons  had  a  confused  idea  about  the  government  that 
they  had  set  up.  In  the  constitution  adopted  they  called  their 
domain  the  State  of  Deseret,  but  they  allowed  their  legislature  to 
elect  their  representative  in  Congress,  sending  A.  W.  Babbitt  as 
their  delegate  to  Washington,  with  their  memorial  asking  for  the 
admission  of  Deseret,  or  that  they  be  given  "  such  other  form  of 
civil  government  as  your  wisdom  and  magnanimity  may  award  to 
the  people  of  Deseret"  The  Mormons'  old  political  friend  in 
Illinois,  Stephen  A.  Douglas,  presented  this  memorial  in  the  Sen- 
ate on  December  27,  1849,  with  a  statement  that  it  was  an  applica- 
tion for  admission  as  a  state,  but  with  the  alternative  of  admission 
as  a  territory  if  Congress  should  so  direct.  The  memorial  was 
referred  to  the  Committee  on  Territories. 

On  the  31st  of  December,  a  counter  memorial  against  the 
admission  of  the  Mormon  state  was  presented  by  Mr.  Underwood 
of  Kentucky,  a  Whig.  This  was  signed  by  William  Smith,  the 
prophet's  brother,  and  Isaac  Sheen  (who  called  themselves  the 
"legitimate  presidents"  of  the  Mormon  church),  and  by  twelve 
other  members.  This  memorial  alleged  that  fifteen  hundred  of  the 
emigrants  from  Nauvoo  to  Salt  Lake  City,  before  their  departure 
for  Illinois,  took  the  following  oath:  — 

"  You  do  solemnly  swear,  in  the  presence  of  Almighty  God,  his  holy  angels, 
and  these  witnesses,  that  you  will  avenge  the  blood  of  Joseph  Smith  upon  this 
nation,  and  so  teach  your  children ;  and  that  you  will  from  this  day  henceforth 
and  forever  begin  and  carry  out  hostility  against  this  nation,  and  keep  the  same 
a  profound  secret  now  and  ever.     So  help  you  God." 

This  memorial  also  set  forth  that  the  Mormons  were  practising 
polygamy  in  the  Salt  Lake  Valley ;  that  since  their  arrival  there 

1<(When  Congress  adjourned  on  March  4,  1849,  all  that  had  been  done  toward 
establishing  some  form  of  government  for  the  immense  domain  acquired  by  the  treaty 
with  Mexico  was  to  extend  over  it  the  revenue  laws  and  make  San  Francisco  a  port  of 
entry."  —  Bancroft's  "  Utah,"  p.  446. 


EARLY   POLITICAL   HISTORY  43 1 

they  had  tried  two  Indian  agents  on  a  charge  of  participation  in  the 
expulsion  of  the  Mormons  from  Missouri,  and  that  they  were,  by 
their  own  assumed  authority,  imposing  duties  on  all  goods  imported 
into  the  Salt  Lake  region  from  the  rest  of  the  United  States. 
Senator  Douglas,  in  an  explanation  concerning  the  latter  charge, 
admitted  that  Delegate  Babbitt  acknowledged  the  levying  of  duties, 
the  excuse  being  that  the  Mormons  had  found  it  necessary  to  set 
up  a  government  for  themselves,  pending  the  action  of  Congress, 
and  as  a  means  of  revenue  they  had  imposed  duties  on  all  goods 
brought  into  and  sold  within  the  limits  of  Great  Salt  Lake  City, 
but  asserted  that  goods  simply  passing  through  were  not  molested. 
This  tax  seems  to  have  been  established  entirely  by  the  church 
authorities,  the  first  of  the  "  ordinances  "  of  the  Deseret  legislature 
being  dated  January  15,  1850. 

The  constitution  of  Deseret  was  presented  to  the  House  of 
Representatives  by  Mr.  Boyd,  a  Kentucky  Democrat,  on  January 
28,  1850,  and  referred  to  the  Committee  on  Territories.  On  July  25, 
John  Wentworth,  an  Illinois  Democrat,  presented  a  petition  from 
citizens  of  Lee  County,  in  his  state,  asking  Congress  to  protect 
the  rights  of  American  citizens  passing  through  the  Salt  Lake 
Valley,  and  charging  on  the  organizers  of  the  State  of  Deseret 
treason,  a  desire  for  a  kingly  government,  murder,  robbery,  and 
polygamy. 

The  Mormon  memorial  was  taken  up  in  the  House  of  Repre- 
sentatives on  July  18,  after  the  committee  had  unanimously 
reported  that  "  it  is  inexpedient  to  admit  Almon  W.  Babbitt,  Esq., 
to  a  seat  in  this  body  from  the  alleged  State  of  Deseret."  A  long 
debate  on  the  admission  of  the  delegate  from  New  Mexico  had 
deferred  action.  The  chairman  of  the  committee,  Mr.  Strong,  a 
Pennsylvania  Whig,  explained  that  their  report  was  founded  on  the 
terms  of  the  Mormon  memorial,  which  did  not  ask  for  Babbitt's 
reception  as  a  delegate  until  some  form  of  government  was  pro- 
vided for  them.  Mr.  McDonald,  an  Indiana  Whig,  offered  an 
amendment  admitting  Babbitt,  and  a  debate  of  considerable  length 
followed,  in  which  the  slavery  question  received  some  attention. 
The  Committee  of  the  Whole  voted  to  report  to  the  House  the  reso- 
lution against  seating  Babbitt,  and  then  the  House,  by  a  vote  of 
104  yeas  to  78  nays,  laid  the  resolution  on  the  table  (on  motion  of 
its  friends),  and  tabled  a  motion  for  reconsideration. 


432  THE   STORY   OF  THE   MORMONS 

On  the  9th  of  September  following,  the  law  for  the  admission 
of  Utah  as  a  territory  was  signed.  The  boundaries  defined  were 
California  on  the  west,  Oregon  on  the  north,  the  summit  of  the 
Rocky  Mountains  on  the  east,  and  the  37th  parallel  of  north  lati- 
tude on  the  south. 


CHAPTER  VI 

BRIGHAM   YOUNG'S   DESPOTISM 

There  is  no  reason  to  believe  that,  to  the  date  of  Joseph 
Smith's  death,  Brigham  Young  had  inspired  his  fellow-Mormons 
with  an  idea  of  his  leadership.  This  was  certified  to  by  one  of  the 
most  radical  of  them,  Mayor  Jedediah  M.  Grant  of  Salt  Lake  City, 
in  1852,  in  these  words:  — 

"When  Joseph  Smith  lived  —  a  man  about  whose  real  character  and  preten- 
sions we  differ  —  Joseph  was  often  and  almost  invariably  imposed  upon  by  those 
in  whom  he  placed  his  trust.  There  was  one  man  —  only  one  of  his  early  adhe- 
rents —  he  could  always  rely  upon  to  stick  to  him  closer  than  a  brother,  steadfast 
in  faith,  clear  in  counsel,  and  foremost  in  fight.  He  seemed  a  plain  man  in  those 
days,  of  a  wonderful  talent  for  business  and  hundred  horse-power  of  industry,  but 
least  of  everything  affecting  cleverness  or  quickness.  "Honest  Brigham  Young,' 
or  '  hard-working  Brigham  Young,'  was  nearly  as  much  as  you  would  ever  hear 
him  called,  though  he  was  the  almost  universal  executor  and  trustee  of  men's 
wills  and  trusteed  estates,  and  a  confidential  manager  of  our  most  intricate  church 
affairs."  1 

When  the  Saints  found  themselves  in  Salt  Lake  Valley  they 
had  learned  something  from  experience.  They  could  not  fail  to 
realize  that,  distant  as  they  now  were  from  outside  interference, 
union  among  themselves  was  an  essential  to  success.  The  body  of 
the  church  was  soon  composed  of  two  elements  —  those  who  had 
constituted  the  church  in  the  East,  and  the  new  members  who  were 
pouring  in  from  Europe.  Young  established  his  leadership  with 
both  of  these  parties  in  the  early  days.  There  was  much  to  dis- 
courage in  those  days  —  a  soil  to  cultivate  that  required  irrigation, 
houses  to  build  where  material  was  scarce,  and  starvation  to  fight 
year  after  year.  Young  encouraged  everybody  by  his  talk  at  the 
church  meetings,  shared  in  the  manual  labor  of  building  houses 
and  cultivating  land,  and  devised  means  to  entertain  and  encourage 

1  Grant's  pamphlet,  "Truth  about  the  Mormons." 
2F  433 


V 


434  THE   STORY   OF  THE   MORMONS 

those  who  were  disposed  to  look  on  their  future  darkly.  No  one 
ever  heard  him,  whatever  others  might  say,  doubt  the  genuineness 
of  Joseph  Smith's  inspiration  and  revelations,  and  he  so  established 
his  own  position  as  Smith's  successor  that  he  secured  the  devout 
allegiance  of  the  old  flock,  without  making  such  business  mistakes 
as  weakened  Smith's  reputation.  "  I  believed,"  says  John  D.  Lee, 
one  of  the  most  trusted  and  prominent  of  the  church  members 
almost  to  the  day  of  his  death,  "  that  Brigham  Young  spoke  by  the 
direction  of  the  God  of  heaven.  I  would  have  suffered  death 
rather  than  have  disobeyed  any  command  of  his."  Said  Young's 
associate  in  the  First  Presidency,  Heber  C.  Kimball,  "  To  me  the 
word  comes  from  Brother  Brigham  as  the  word  of  God,"  and 
again,  "  His  word  is  the  word  of  God  to  his  people."  1 

The  new-comers  from  Europe  were  simply  helpless.  They 
were,  in  the  first  place,  religious  enthusiasts,  who  believed,  when 
they  set  out  on  their  journey,  that  they  were  going  to  a  real  Zion. 
Large  numbers  of  them  were  indebted  to  the  church  for  at  least  a 
part  of  their  passage  money  from  the  day  of  their  arrival.  Few 
of  those  who  had  paid  their  own  way  brought  much  cash  capital, 
all  depending  on  the  representations  about  the  richness  of  the 
valley  which  had  been  held  out  to  them.  Once  there,  they  soon 
realized  that  all  must  sustain  the  same  policy  if  the  church  was  to 
be  a  success.  They  were,  too,  of  that  superstitious  class  which 
was  ready,  not  only  to  believe  in  modern  miracles,  "  signs,"  and  rev- 
elations, but  actually  hungered  for  such  manifestations,  and,  once 
accepting  membership  in  the  church,  they  accepted  with  it  the 
dictation  of  the  head  of  the  church  in  all  things.  Secretary  Fuller 
has  told  me  that,  after  he  ascertained  the  existence  of  gold  near 
Salt  Lake  City,  he  said  to  an  intelligent  goldsmith  there,  "Why 
do  you  not  look  for  the  gold  you  need  in  your  business  in  the 
mountains  ?  "  "  Why,"  was  the  reply,  "  if  I  went  to  the  mountains 
and  found  gold,  and  put  it  into  my  pouch,  the  pouch  would  be 
empty  when  I  got  back  to  the  city.  I  know  this  is  so,  because 
Brigham  Young  has  told  me  so." 

The  extent  of  the  dictatorship  which  Young  prescribed  and 
carried  out  in  all  matters,  spiritual  and  commercial,  might  be 
questioned  if  we  were  not  able  to  follow  the  various  steps  taken 
in  establishing  his  authority,  and  to  illustrate  its  scope,  by  the 

1  Journal  of  Discourses,  Vol.  IV,  p.  47. 


BRIGHAM    YOUNG'S   DESPOTISM 


435 


testimony,  not  of  men  who  suffered  from  it,  but  by  his  own  words 
and  those  of  his  closest  associates.  With  a  blindness  which  seems 
incomprehensible,  the  sermons,  or  "discourses,"  delivered  in  the 
early  days  in  Salt  Lake  City  were  printed  under  church  authority, 
and  are  preserved  "in  the  Journal  of  Discourses.  The  student  of 
this  chapter  of  the  church's  history  can  obtain  what  information 
he  wants  by  reading  the  volumes  of  this  Journal.  The  language 
used  is  often  coarse,  but  there  is  never  any  difficulty  in  under- 
standing the  speakers. 

Young  referred  to  his  own  plain  speaking  in  a  discourse  on 
October  6,  1855.  He  said  that  he  had  received  advice  about 
bridling  his  tongue  —  a  wheelbarrow  load  of  such  letters  from  the 
East,  especially  on  the  subject  of  his  attacks  on  the  Gentiles. 
"  Do  you  know,"  he  asked,  "  how  I  feel  when  I  get  such  com- 
munications ?  I  will  tell  you.  I  feel  just  like  rubbing  their  noses 
with  them."1  In  a  discourse  on  February  17,  1856,  he  vouchsafed 
this  explanation,  "  If  I  were  preaching  abroad  in  the  world,  I 
should  feel  myself  somewhat  obliged,  through  custom,  to  adhere 
to  the  wishes  and  feelings  of  the  people  in  regard  to  pursuing  the 
thread  of  any  given  subject ;  but  here  I  feel  as  free  as  air."  2 

Mention  has  already  been  made  of  Young's  refusal  to  continue 
Smith's  series  of  "revelations."  In  doing  this  he  never  admitted 
for  a  moment  any  lack  of  authority  as  spokesman  for  the  Al- 
mighty. A  few  illustrations  will  make  clear  his  position  in  this 
matter.  Defining  his  view  of  his  own  authority,  before  the  Gen- 
eral Conference  in  Salt  Lake  City,  on  April  6,  1850,  he  said, 
"  It  is  your  privilege  and  it  is  mine  to  receive  revelation ;  and  my 
privilege  to  dictate  to  the  church."  3 

When  the  site  of  the  Temple  was  consecrated,  in  1853,  there 
were  many  inquiries  whether  a  revelation  had  been  given  about  its 
construction.  Young  said,  "  If  the  Lord  and  all  the  people  want 
a  revelation,  I  can  give  one  concerning  this  Temple  "  ;  but  he  did 
not  do  so,  declaring  that  a  revelation  was  no  more  necessary  con- 
cerning the  building  of  a  temple  than  it  was  concerning  a  kitchen 
or  a  bedroom.4  We  must  certainly  concede  to  this  man  a  dictator's 
daring. 

An  early  illustration  of   Young's   policy  toward   all   Mormon 

1  Journal  of  Discourses,  Vol.  Ill,  p.  48.        8  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XII,  p.  273. 

2  Ibid.,  p.  21 1.  *  Ibid.,  Vol.  XV,  p.  391. 


436  THE   STORY   OF  THE   MORMONS 

offenders  was  given  in  the  case  of  the  so-called  "  Gladdenites." 
There  were  members  of  the  church  even  in  Utah  who  were  ready 
to  revolt  when  the  open  announcement  of  the  "  revelation  "  regard- 
ing polygamy  was  made  in  1852,  and  they  found  a  leader  in  Glad- 
den Bishop,  who  had  had  much  experience  in  apostasy,  repentance, 
and  readmission.1  These  men  held  meetings  and  made  consider- 
able headway,  but  when  the  time  came  for  Brigham  to  exercise 
his  authority  he  did  it. 

On  Sunday,  March  20,  1853,  a  meeting,  orderly  in  every  re- 
spect, which  the  Gladdenites  were  holding  in  front  of  the  Council 
House,  was  dispersed  by  the  city  marshal,  and  another,  called  for 
the  next  Sunday,  was  prohibited  entirely.  Then  Alfred  Smith,  a 
leading  Gladdenite,  who  had  accused  Young  of  robbing  him  of  his 
property,  was  arrested  and  locked  up  until  he  gave  a  promise  to 
discontinue  his  rebellion.  On  the  27th  of  March  Young  made  the 
Gladdenites  the  subject  of  a  large  part  of  his  discourse  in  the  Tab- 
ernacle. What  he  said  is  thus  stated  in  the  church  report  of  the 
address  :  — 

"I  say  to  those  persons :  You  must  not  court  persecution  here,  lest  you  get 
so  much  of  it  you  will  not  know  what  to  do  with  it.  Do  not  court  persecution. 
We  have  known  Gladden  Bishop  for  more  than  twenty  years,  and  know  him  to 
be  a  poor,  dirty  curse.  ...  I  say  again,  you  Gladdenites,  do  not  court  perse- 
cution, or  you  will  get  more  than  you  want,  and  it  will  come  quicker  than  you 
want  it.  I  say  to  you  Bishops,  do  not  allow  them  to  preach  in  your  wards."  (After 
telling  of  a  dream  he  had  had,  in  which  he  saw  two  men  creep  into  the  bed  where 
one  of  his  wives  was  lying,  whereupon  he  took  a  large  bowie  knife  and  cut  one  of 
their  throats  from  ear  to  ear,  saying,  "  Go  to  hell  across  lots," he  continued  :)  "I 
say,  rather  than  that  apostates  should  flourish  here  I  will  unsheath  my  bowie  knife 
and  conquer  or  die."  (Great  commotion  in  the  congregation,  and  a  simultaneous 
burst  of  feeling,  assenting  to  the  declaration.)  "  Now,  you  nasty  apostates,  clear 
out,  or  judgment  will  be  put  to  the  line  and  righteousness  to  the  plummet."  (Voices 
generally,  "  Go  it,"  "go  it.")  "  If  you  say  it  is  all  right,  raise  your  hand."  (All 
hands  up.)     "  Let  us  call  upon  the  Lord  to  assist  us  in  this  and  every  good  work."  2 

This  was  the  practical  end  of  Gladdenism. 

Young's  dictatorship  was  quite  as  broad  and  determined  in 
things  temporal  as  in  things  spiritual.  He  made  no  concealment 
of  the  fact  that  he  was  a  money-getter,  only  insisting  on  his  read- 

1  "This  Gladden  gave  Joseph  much  trouble;  was  cut  off  from  the  church  and  taken 
back  and  rebaptized  nine  times."  —  Ferris,  "Utah  and  the  Mormons,"  p.  326. 

2  Journal  of Discourses,  Vol.  I,  p.  82. 


BRIGHAM   YOUNG'S   DESPOTISM  437 

iness  to  contribute  to  the  support  of  church  enterprises.  The 
canons  through  the  mountains  which  shut  in  the  valley  were  the 
source  of  wood  supply  for  the  city,  and  their  control  was  very  val- 
uable. Young  brought  this  matter  before  the  Conference  of  Oc- 
tober 9,  1852,  speaking  on  it  at  length,  and  finally  putting  his  own 
view  in  the  form  of  a  resolution  that  the  canons  be  placed  in  the 
hands  of  individuals,  who  should  make  good  roads  through  them, 
and  obtain  their  pay  by  taking  toll  at  the  entrance.  After  getting 
the  usual  unanimous  vote  on  his  proposition,  he  said  :  "  Let  the 
Judges  of  the  County  of  Great  Salt  Lake  take  due  notice  and  gov- 
ern themselves  accordingly.  .  .  .  This  is  my  order  for  the  Judges 
to  take  due  notice  of.  It  does  not  come  from  the  Governor,  but 
from  the  President  of  the  church.  You  will  not  see  any  proclama- 
tion in  the  paper  to  this  effect,  but  it  is  a  mere  declaration  of  the 
President  of  the  Conference."  1  The  "  declaration,"  of  course,  had 
all  the  effect  of  a  law,  and  Young  got  one  of  the  best  canons. 

Very  early  in  his  rule  Young  defined  his  views  about  the  prop- 
erty rights  of  the  Saints.  "A  man,"  he  declared  in  the  Tabernacle 
on  June  5,  1853,  "  has  no  right  with  property  which,  according  to  the 
laws  of  the  land,  legally  belongs  to  him,  if  he  does  not  want  to  use 
it.  .  .  .  When  we  first  came  into  the  valley,  the  question  was 
asked  me  if  men  would  ever  be  allowed  to  come  into  this  church, 
and  remain  in  it,  and  hoard  up  their  property.     I  say,  no."  2 

Another  view  of  property  rights  was  thus  set  forth  in  his  dis- 
course of  December  5,  1853  :  — 

"If  an  Elder  has  borrowed  [a  hundred  or  a  thousand  dollars  from  you],  and 
you  find  he  is  going  to  apostatize,  then  you  may  tighten  the  screws  on  him. 
But  if  he  is  willing  to  preach  the  Gospel  without  purse  or  scrip,  it  is  none  of 
your  business  what  he  does  with  the  money  he  has  borrowed  from  you."3 

Addressing  the  people  in  the  trying  business  year  of  1856, 
when  his  own  creditors  were  pushing  him  hard,  Young  said  :  — ■ 

"  I  wish  to  give  you  one  text  to  preach  upon,  '  From  this  time  henceforth  do 
not  fret  thy  gizzard.1  I  will  pay  you  when  I  can  and  not  before.  Now  I  hope 
you  will  apostatize  if  you  would  rather  do  it."4 

Kimball,  in  giving  Young's  order  to  some  seventy  men,  who  had 
displeased  him,  to  leave  the  territory,  used  these  words :  "  When 

1  Journal  of  Discourses,  Vol.  I,  pp.  217,  218.  8  Ibid.,  Vol.  I,  p.  340. 

2  Ibid,,  Vol.  I,  pp.  252-253.  4  Ibid.,  Vol.  Ill,  p.  4. 


438  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

a  man  is  appointed  to  take  a  mission,  unless  he  has  a  just  and 
honorable  reason  for  not  going,  if  he  does  not  go  he  will  be  sev- 
ered from  the  church.  Why  ?  Because  you  said  you  were  willing 
to  be  passive,  and,  if  you  are  not  passive,  that  lump  of  clay  must 
be  cut  off  from  the  church  and  laid  aside,  and  a  lump  put  on  that 
will  be  passive."  * 

With  this  testimony  of  men  inside  the  church  may  be  placed 
that  of  Captain  Howard  Stansbury,  of  the  United  Stated  Topo- 
graphical Engineers,  who  arrived  in  the  valley  in  August,  1849, 
under  instructions  from  the  government  to  make  a  survey  of  the 
lakes  of  that  region.  The  Mormons  thought  that  it  was  the  inten- 
tion of  the  government  to  divide  the  land  into  townships  and  sec- 
tions, and  to  ignore  their  claim  to  title  by  occupation.  In  his 
official  report,  after  mentioning  his  haste  to  disabuse  Young's 
mind  on  this  point,  Captain  Stansbury  says,  "  I  was  induced  to 
pursue  this  conciliatory  course,  not  only  in  justice  to  the  govern- 
ment, but  also  because  I  knew,  from  the  peculiar  organization  of 
this  singular  community,  that,  unless  the '  President '  was  fully 
satisfied  that  no  evil  was  intended  to  his  people,  it  would  be  use- 
less for  me  to  attempt  to  carry  out  my  instructions."  The  choice 
between  abject  conciliation  or  open  conflict  was  that  which  Brig- 
ham  Young  extended  to  nearly  every  federal  officer  who  entered 
Utah  during  his  reign. 

The  Mormons  of  Utah  started  in  to  assert  their  independence 
of  the  government  of  the  United  States  in  every  way.  The  rejec- 
tion of  the  constitution  of  Deseret  by  Congress  did  not  hinder  the 
elected  legislature  from  meeting  and  passing  laws.  The  ninth 
chapter  of  the  "  ordinances,"  as  they  were  called,  passed  by  this 
legislature  (on  January  19,  185 1)  was  a  charter  for  Great  Salt 
Lake  City.  This  charter  provided  for  the  election  of  a  mayor, 
four  aldermen,  nine  councillors,  and  three  judges,  the  first  judges 
to  be  chosen  viva  voce,  and  their  successors  by  the  City  Council. 
The  appointment  of  eleven  subordinate  officers  was  placed  in  the 
Council's  hands.  The  mayor  and  aldermen  were  to  be  the  justices 
of  the  peace,  with  a  right  of  appeal  to  the  municipal  court,  con- 
sisting of  the  same  persons  sitting  together,  and  from  that  to  the 
probate  court.  The  first  mayor,  aldermen,  and  councillors  were 
appointed   by   the   governor   of   the  State   of    Deseret.      Similar 

1  Journal  of  Discourses,  Vol.  Ill,  p.  242. 


BRIGHAM   YOUNG'S   DESPOTISM  439 

charters  were  provided  for  Ogden,  Provo  City,  and  other  settle- 
ments. 

As  soon  as  Salt  Lake  City  was  laid  off  into  wards,  Young  had 
a  Bishop  placed  over  each  of  these,  and,  always  under  his  direction, 
these  Bishops  practically  controlled  local  affairs  to  the  date  of  the 
city  charter.  Each  Bishop  came  to  be  a  magistrate  of  his  ward,1 
and  under  them  in  all  the  settlements  all  public  work  was  carried 
on  and  all  revenue  collected.  The  High  Council  of  ten  is  defined 
by  Tullidge  as  "  a  quorum  of  judges,  in  equity  for  the  people,  at 
the  head  of  which  is  the  President  of  the  state." 

These  men  did  not  hesitate  to  attempt  a  currency  of  their  own. 
On  the  arrival  of  the  Mormons  in  the  valley,  they  first  made  their 
exchanges  through  barter.  Paper  currency  was  issued  in  1849  an^ 
some  years  later.  When  gold  dust  from  California  appeared  in 
1849,  some  of  it  was  coined  in  Salt  Lake  City  by  means  of  home- 
made dies  and  crucibles.  The  denominations  were  $2.50,  $$,  $10, 
and  $20.  Some  of  these  coins,  made  without  alloy,  were  stamped 
with  a  bee-hive  and  eagle  on  one  side,  and  on  the  reverse  with  the 
motto,  "  Holiness  to  the  Lord  "  in  the  so-called  Deseret  alphabet. 
This  alphabet  was  invented  after  their  arrival  in  Salt  Lake  Valley, 
to  assist  in  separating  the  Mormons  from  the  rest  of  the  nation,  its 
preparation  having  been  intrusted  to  a  committee  of  the  board  of 
regents  in  1853.  It  contained  thirty-two  characters.  A  primer 
and  two  books  of  the  Mormon  Bible  were  printed  in  the  new 
characters,  the  legislature  in  1855  having  voted  $2500  to  meet  the 
expense;  but  the  alphabet  was  never  practically  used,  and  no 
attempt  is  any  longer  made  to  remember  it.  Early  in  1849  tne 
High  Council  voted  that  the  Kirtland  bank-bills  (of  which  a  supply 
must  have  remained  unissued)  be  put  out  on  a  par  with  gold,  and  in 
this  they  saw  a  fulfilment  of  the  prophet's  declaration  that  these 
notes  would  some  day  be  as  good  as  gold. 

Another  early  ordinance  passed  by  the  Deseret  legislature 
incorporated  "  The  Church  of  Jesus  Christ  of  Latter-Day  Saints," 

1  Brigham  Young  testified  in  the  Tabernacle  as  to  the  kind  of  justice  that, was  meted 
out  in  the  Bishops'  courts.  In  his  sermon  of  March  6,  1856,  he  said:  "There  are  men 
here  by  the  score  who  do  not  know  their  right  hands  from  their  left,  so  far  as  the  prin- 
ciples of  justice  are  concerned.  Does  our  High  Council?  No,  for  they  will  let  men 
throw  dirt  in  their  eyes  until  you  cannot  find  the  one  hundred  millionth  part  of  an  ounce 
of  common  sense  in  them.  You  may  go  to  the  Bishops'  courts,  and  what  are  they?  A 
set  of  old  grannies.  They  cannot  judge  a  case  pending  between  two  old  women,  to  say 
nothing  of  a  case  between  man  and  man."  — Journal  of  Discourses,  Vol.  Ill,  p.  225. 


440  THE   STORY  OF  THE  MORMONS 

authorizing  the  appointment  of  a  trustee  in  trust  to  hold  and 
manage  all  the  property  of  the  church,  which  should  be  free  from 
tax,  and  giving  the  church  complete  authority  to  make  its  own 
regulations,  "  provided,  however,  that  each  and  every  act  or  prac- 
tice so  established,  or  adopted  for  law  or  custom,  shall  relate  to 
solemnities,  sacraments,  ceremonies,  consecrations,  endowments, 
tithing,  marriages,  fellowship,  or  the  religious  duties  of  man  to  his 
Maker,  inasmuch  as  the  doctrines,  principles,  practices,  or  perform- 
ances support  virtue  and  increase  morality,  and  are  not  inconsistent 
with  or  repugnant  to  the  constitution  of  the  United  States  or  of 
this  State,  and  are  founded  on  the  revelations  of  the  Lord."  Thus 
early  was  the  ground  taken  that  the  practice  of  polygamy  was  a 
constitutional  right.     Brigham  Young  was  chosen  as  the  trustee. 

The  second  ordinance  passed  by  this  legislature  incorporated 
the  University  of  the  State  of  Deseret,  at  Salt  Lake  City,  to  be 
governed  by  a  chancellor  and  twelve  regents. 

The  earliest  non-Mormons  to  experience  the  effect  of  that  abso- 
lute Mormon  rule,  the  consequences  of  which  the  Missourians  had 
feared,  were  the  emigrants  who  passed  through  Salt  Lake  Valley 
on  their  way  to  California  after  the  discovery  of  gold,  or  on  their 
way  to  Oregon.  The  complaints  of  the  Californians  were  set  forth 
in  a  little  book,  written  by  one  of  them,  Nelson  Slater,  and  printed 
in  Colona,  California,  in  185 1,  under  the  title,  "  Fruits  of  Mormon- 
ism."  The  general  complaints  were  set  forth  briefly  in  a  petition 
to  Congress  containing  nearly  two  hundred  and  fifty  signatures, 
dated  Colona,  June  1,  185 1,  which  asked  that  the  territorial  gov- 
ernment be  abrogated,  and  a  military  government  be  established  in 
its  place.  This  petition  charged  that  many  emigrants  had  been 
murdered  by  the  Mormons  when  there  was  a  suspicion  that  they 
had  taken  part  in  the  earlier  persecutions  ;  that  when  any  members 
of  the  Mormon  community,  becoming  dissatisfied,  tried  to  leave, 
they  were  pursued  and  killed ;  that  the  Mormons  levied  a  tax  of 
two  per  cent  on  the  property  of  emigrants  who  were  compelled  to 
pass  a  winter  among  them;  that  it  was  nearly  impossible  for  emi- 
grants to  obtain  justice  in  the  Mormon  courts;  that  the  Mormons, 
high  and  low,  openly  expressed  treasonable  sentiments  against  the 
United  States  government ;  and  that  letters  of  emigrants  mailed  at 
Salt  Lake  City  were  opened,  and  in  many  instances  destroyed. 

Mr.  Slater's  book  furnishes  the  specifications  of  these  general 
charges. 


CHAPTER   VII 
THE   "REFORMATION" 

Young  soon  had  occasion  to  make  practical  use  of  the  dictato- 
rial power  that  he  had  assumed.  The  character  which  those  mem- 
bers of  the  flock  who  had  migrated  from  Missouri  and  Illinois  had 
established  among  their  neighbors  in  those  states  was  not  changed 
simply  by  their  removal  to  a  wilderness  all  by  themselves.  They 
had  no  longer  the  old  excuse  that  their  misdeeds  were  reprisals  on 
persecuting  enemies,  but  this  did  not  save  them  from  the  tempta- 
tion to  exercise  their  natural  propensities.  Again  we  shall  take 
only  the  highest  Mormon  testimony  on  this  subject. 

One  of  the  first  sins  for  which  Young  openly  reproved  his  con- 
gregation was  profane  swearing.  He  brought  this  matter  point- 
edly to  their  attention  in  an  address  to  the  Conference  of  October 
9,  1852,  when  he  said:  "You  Elders  of  Israel  will  go  into  the 
canons,  and  curse  and  swear  —  damn  and  curse  your  oxen,  and 
swear  by  Him  who  created  you.  I  am  telling  the  truth.  Yes,  you 
rip  and  curse  and  swear  as  bad  as  any  pirates  ever  did."  1 

Possibly  the  church  authorities  could  have  overlooked  the 
swearing,  but  a  matter  which  gave  them  more  distress  was  the 
insecurity  of  property.  This  became  so  great  an  annoyance  that 
Young  spoke  out  plainly  on  the  subject,  and  he  did  not  attempt  to 
place  the  responsibility  outside  of  his  own  people.  A  few  citations 
will  illustrate  this. 

In  an  address  in  the  Tabernacle  on  June  5,  1853,  noticing  com- 
plaints about  the  stealing  and  rebranding  of  cattle,  he  said  :  "  I 
will  propose  a  plan  to  stop  the  stealing  of  cattle  in  coming  time, 
and  it  is  this  —  let  those  who  have  cattle  on  hand  join  in  a  company, 
and  fence  in  about  fifty  thousand  acres  of  land,  and  so  keep  on 
fencing  until  all  the  vacant  land  is  substantially  enclosed.     Some 

1  Journal  of  Discourses,  Vol.  I,  p.  211. 
441 


442  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

persons  will  perhaps  say,  '  I  do  not  know  how  good  or  how  high  a 
fence  it  will  be  necessary  to  build  to  keep  thieves  out.'  I  do  not 
know  either,  except  you  build  one  that  will  keep  out  the  devil."1 
On  another  occasion,  with  a  personal  grievance  to  air,  he  said  in 
the  Tabernacle  :  "  I  have  gone  to  work  and  made  roads  to  get 
wood,  and  have  not  been  able  to  get  it.  I  have  cut  it  down  and 
piled  it  up,  and  still  have  not  got  it.  I  wonder  if  anybody  else 
can  say  so.  Have  any  of  you  piled  up  your  wood,  and,  when  you 
have  gone  back,  could  not  find  it  ?  Some  stories  could  be  told  of 
this  kind  that  would  make  professional  thieves  ashamed."  2 

Young  made  no  concealment  of  the  fact  that  men  high  in  the 
councils  of  the  church  were  among  the  peculators.  In  his  dis- 
course of  June  15,  1856,  he  said:  "I  have  proof  ready  to  show 
that  Bishops  have  taken  in  thousands  of  pounds  in  weight  of  tith- 
ing which  they  have  never  reported  to  the  General  Tithing  Office. 
We  have  documents  to  show  that  Bishops  have  taken  in  hundreds 
of  bushels  of  wheat,  and  only  a  small  portion  of  it  has  come  into  the 
General  Tithing  Office.  They  stole  it  to  let  their  friends  speculate 
upon."  3 

The  new-comers  from  Europe  also  received  his  attention. 
Referring  to  unkept  promises  of  speedy  repayment  by  assisted 
immigrants  of  advances  made  to  them,  Young  said,  in  1855  :  "And 
what  will  they  do  when  they  get  here  ?  Steal  our  wagons,  and  go 
off  with  them  to  Canada/ and  try  to  steal  the  bake-kettles,  frying- 
pans,  tents,  and  wagon-covers ;  and  will  borrow  the  oxen  and  run 
away  with  them,  if  you  do  not  watch  them  closely.  Do  they  all 
do  this?  No,  but  many  of  them  will  try  to  do  it."4  And  again, 
a  month  later :  "  What  previous  characters  some  of  you  had  in 
Wales,  in  England,  in  Scotland,  and  perhaps  in  Ireland.  Do  not 
be  scared  if  it  is  proven  against  some  one  in  the  Bishop's  court 
that  you  did  steal  the  poles  from  your  neighbor's  garden  fence. 
If  it  is  proven  that  you  have  been  to  some  person's  wood  pile  and 
stolen  wood,  don't  be  frightened,  for  if  you  will  steal  it  must  be 
made  manifest."5  J.  M.  Grant  was  quite  as  plain  spoken.  In  an 
address  in  the  bowery  in  Salt  Lake  City  in  September,  1856,  he 
declared  that  "  you  can  scarcely  find  a  place  in  this  city  that  is  not 
full  of  filth  and  abominations."  6 

1  Journal  of  Discourses,  Vol.  I,  p.  252.  2  Ibid.,  Vol.  I,  p.  213.  3  Ibid.,  Vol.  Ill,  p.  342. 
4  Ibid.,  Vol.  Ill,  p.  3.  5  Ibid.,  Vol.  Ill,  p.  49.       6  Ibid.,  Vol.  IV,  p.  5 1 . 


THE   "REFORMATION"  443 

Young's  denunciations  were  not  quietly  accepted,  but  protests 
and  threats  were  alike  wasted  upon  him.  Referring  to  complaints 
of  some  of  the  flock  that  his  denunciation  was  more  than  they 
could  bear,  he  replied,  "  But  you  have  got  to  bear  it,  and,  if  you 
will  not,  make  up  your  minds  to  go  to  hell  at  once  and  have  done 
with  it."1  On  another  occasion  he  said,  "You  need,  figuratively, 
to  have  it  rain  pitchforks,  tines  downward,  from  this  pulpit,  Sun- 
day after  Sunday."  On  another  occasion,  alluding  to  letters  he 
had  received,  warning  him  against  attacking  men's  characters,  he 
said,  "  When  such  epistles  come  to  me,  I  feel  like  saying,  I  ask 
no  advice  of  you  nor  of  all  your  clan  this  side  of  hell."  2 

When  mere  denunciation  did  not  reform  his  followers,  Young 
became  still  plainer  in  his  language,  and  began  to  explain  to  them 
the  latitude  which  the  church  proposed  to  take  in  applying  pun- 
ishment. In  a  remarkable  sermon  on  October  6,  1855,  on  the 
"stealing,  lying,  deceiving,  wickedness,  and  covetousness  "  of  the  ^ 
elders  in  Israel,  he  spoke  as  follows :  — 

"  Live  on  he're,  then,  you  poor  miserable  curses,  until  the  time  of  retribution, 
when  your  heads  will  have  to  be  severed  from  your  bodies.  Just  let  the  Lord 
Almighty  say,  Lay  judgment  to  the  line  and  righteousness  to  the  plummet,3  and 
the  time  of  thieves  is  short  in  this  community.  What  do  you  suppose  they 
would  say  in  old  Massachusetts  should  they  hear  that  the  Latter-day  Saints  had 
received  a  revelation  or  commandment  to  '  lay  judgment  to  the  line  and  right- 
eousness to  the  plummet '  ?  What  would  they  say  in  old  Connecticut  ?  They 
would  raise  a  universal  howl  of,  '  How  wicked  the  Mormons  are.  They  are  kill- 
ing the  evil  doers  who  are  among  them.  Why,  I  hear  that  they  kill  the  wicked 
away  up  yonder  in  Utah.'  .  .  .  What  do  I  care  for  the  wrath  of  man?  No 
more  than  I  do  for  the  chickens  that  run  in  my  door  yard.  I  am  here  to  teach 
the  ways  of  the  Lord,  and  lead  men  to  life  everlasting ;  but  if  they  have  not  a 
mind  to  go  there,  I  wish  them  to  keep  out  of  my  path."4 

From  this  time  Young  and  his  closest  associates  seemed  to 
make  no  concealment  of  their  intention  to  take  the  lives  of  any  - 
persons  whom  they  considered  offenders.  One  or  two  more  cita- 
tions from  his  discourses  may  be  made  to  sustain  this  statement. 
On  February  24,  1856,  he  declared,  "I  am  not  afraid  of  all  hell, 
nor  of  all  the  world,  in  laying  judgment  to  the  line  when  the  Lord 

1  Journal  of  Discourses,  Vol.  Ill,  p.  49.  2  Ibid.,  p.  50. 

3  These  words,  from  Isaiah  xxviii.  17,  are  constantly  used  by  Young  to  denote  the 
extreme  punishment  which  the  church  might  inflict  on  any  offender. 

4  Journal  of  Discourses,  Vol.  Ill,  p.  50. 


444  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

says  so."  l  In  the  following  month  he  told  his  congregation : 
"The  time  is  coming  when  justice  will  be  laid  to  the  line  and 
righteousness  to  the  plummet ;  when  we  shall  take  the  old  broad- 
sword and  ask,  Are  you  for  God  ?  And  if  you  are  not  heartily 
on  the  Lord's  side,  you  will  be  hewn  down."  2  Heber  C.  Kimball 
was  equally  plain  spoken.  A  year  earlier  he  had  said  in  the 
Tabernacle :  "If  a  man  rebels,  I  will  tell  him  of  it,  and  if  he 
resents  a  timely  warning,  he  is  unwise.  ...  I  have  never  yet 
shed  man's  blood,  and  I  pray  to  God  that  I  never  may,  unless  it  is 
actually  necessary."  3  Sultans  and  doges  have  freely  used  assas- 
sination as  a  weapon,  but  it  seems  to  have  remained  for  the 
Mormon  church  under  Brigham  Young  to  declare  openly  its  in- 
tention to  make  whatever  it  might  call  church  apostasy  subject 
to  capital  punishment. 

Out  of  the  lawless  condition  of  the  Mormon  flock,  as  we  have 
thus  seen  it  pictured,  and  out  of  this  radical  view  of  the  proper 
punishment  of  offenders,  resulted,  in  1856,  that  remarkable  move- 
ment still  known  in  Mormondon  as  "  The  Reformation  "  —  a  move- 
ment that  has  been  characterized  by  one  writer  as  "  a  reign  of  lust 
and  fanatical  fury  unequalled  since  the  Dark  Ages,"  and  by  another 
as  "a  fanaticism  at  once  blind,  dangerous,  and  terrible."  During 
its  continuance  the  religious  zealot,  the  amorous  priest,  the  jeal- 
ous lover,  the  man  covetous  of  worldly  goods,  and  the  framers  of 
the  church  policy,  from  acknowledged  Apostle  to  secret  Danite, 
all  had  their  own  way.  "  Were  I  counsel  for  a  Mormon  on  trial 
for  a  crime  committed  at  the  time  under  consideration,  I  should 
plead  wholesale  insanity,"  said  J.  H.  Beadle.  It  was  during  this 
period  that  that  system  was  perfected  under  which  the  life  of  no 
man,  —  or  company  of  men,  —  against  whom  the  wrath  of  the 
church  was  directed,  was  of  any  value ;  no  household  was  safe 
from  the  lust  of  any  aged  elder ;  no  person  once  in  the  valley 
could  leave  it  alive  against  the  church's  consent. 

The  active  agent  in  starting  "The  Reformation"  was  the  inventor 
of  "  blood  atonement,"  Jedediah  M.  Grant.4     That  his  censure  of 

1  Journal  of  Discourses,  Vol.  Ill,  p.  241.  2  Ibid.,  p.  266. 

3  Ibid.,  pp.  163-164. 

4  A  correspondent  of  the  New  York  Times  at  this  date  described  Grant  as  "  a  tall, 
thin,  repulsive-looking  man,  of  acute,  vigorous  intellect,  a  thorough-paced  scoundrel, 
and  the  most  essential  blackguard  in  the  pulpit.  He  was  sometimes  called  Brigham's 
sledge  hammer." 


THE   "REFORMATION"  445 

a  Bishop  and  his  counsellors  at  Kayesville  was  the  actual  origin  of 
the  movement,  as  has  been  stated,1  cannot  be  accepted  as  proven, 
in  view  of  the  preparation  made  for  the  era  of  blood,  as  indicated 
in  the  church  discourses.  Lieutenant  Gunnison,  for  whom  the 
Mormons  in  later  years  always  asserted  their  friendship,  writing 
concerning  his  observations  as  early  as  1852,  said :  — 

"  Witnesses  are  seldom  put  on  oath  in  the  lower  courts,  and  there  is  nothing 
known  of  the  '  law's  delay,'  and  the  quibbles  whereby  the  ends  of  truth  and  justice 
may  be  defeated.  But  they  have  a  criminal  code  called  '  The  Laws  of  the  Lord,' 
which  has  been  given  by  revelation  and  not  promulgated,  the  people  not  being 
able  quite  to  bear  it,  or  the  organization  still  too  imperfect.  It  is  to  be  put  in 
force,  however,  before  long,  and  when  in  vogue,  all  grave  crimes  will  be  punished 
and  atoned  for  by  cutting  off  the  head  of  the  offender.  This  regulation  arises 
from  the  fact  that  '  without  shedding  of  blood  there  is  no  remission.' "  2 

Gunnison's  statement  furnishes  indisputable  proof  that  this 
legal  system  was  so  generally  talked  of  some  four  years  before  it 
was  put  in  force  that  it  came  to  the  ears  of  a  non-Mormon  tempo- 
rary resident. 

After  the  condemnation  of  the  Kayesville  offenders  and  their 
rebaptism,  the  next  move  was  the  appointment  of  missionaries  to 
hold  services  in  every  ward,  and  the  sending  out  of  what  were 
really  confessors,  appointed  for  every  block,  to  inquire  of  all  — 
young  and  old  —  concerning  the  most  intimate  details  of  their 
lives.  The  printed  catechism  given  to  these  confessors  was  so 
indelicate  that  it  was  suppressed  in  later  years.  These  prying 
inquisitors  found  opportunity  to  gain  information  for  their  superiors 
about  any  persons  suspected  of  disloyalty,  and  one  use  they  made 
of  their  visitations  was  to  urge  the  younger  sisters  to  be  married 
to  the  older  men,  as  a  readier  means  of  salvation  than  union  with 
men  of  their  own  age.  That  there  was  opposition  to  this  espionage 
is  shown  by  some  remarks  of  H.  C.  Kimball  in  the  Tabernacle,  in 
March,  1856,  when  he  said:  "I  have  heard  some  individuals  say- 
ing that,  if  the  Bishops  came  into  their  houses  and  opened  their 
cupboards,  they  would  split  their  heads  open.  That  would  not  be 
a  wise  or  safe  operation."  3 

Some  of  the  information  secured  by  the  church  confessional 

1  "  Rocky  Mountain  Saints,"  p.  293. 

2  "  History  of  the  Mormons,"  p.  83. 

3  Journal  of  Discourses,  Vol.  Ill,  p.  271. 


446  THE   STORY  OF   THE   MORMONS 

was  embarrassing  to  the  leaders.  At  a  meeting  of  male  members 
in  Social  Hall,  Young,  Grant,  and  others  denounced  the  sinners  in 
scathing  terms,  Young  ending  his  remarks  by  saying,  "  All  you 
who  have  been  guilty  of  committing  adultery,  stand  up."  At  once 
more  than  three-quarters  of  those  present  arose.1  For  such  con- 
fessors a  way  of  repentance  was  provided  through  rebaptism,  but 
the  secretly  accused  had  no  such  avenue  opened  to  them. 

One  of  the  first  victims  of  the  reformers  was  H.  J.  Jarvis, 
a  reputable  merchant  of  Salt  Lake  City.  He  was  dragged  over 
his  counter  one  evening  and  thrown  into  the  street  by  men  who 
then  robbed  his  store  and  defiled  his  household  goods,  giving  him 
as  the  cause  of  the  visitation  the  explanation  that  he  had  spoken 
evil  of  the  authorities,  and  had  invited  Gentiles  to  supper.  His 
two  wives  could  not  secure  even  a  hearing  from  Young  in  his 
behalf.2     This,  however,  was  a  minor  incident. 

That  Young's  rule  should  be  objected  to  by  some  members  of 
the  church  was  inevitable.  There  were  men  in  the  valley  at  that 
early  day  who  would  rebel  against  such  a  dictatorship  under  any 
name;  others  —  men  of  means  —  who  were  alarmed  by  the  declara- 
tions about  property  rights,  and  others  to  whom  the  announcement 
concerning  polygamy  was  repugnant.  When  such  persons  gave 
expression  to  their  discontent,  they  angered  the  church  officers ; 
when  they  indicated  their  purpose  to  leave  the  valley,  they  alarmed 
them.  Anything  like  an  exodus  of  the  flock  would  have  broken 
up  all  of  Young's  plans,  and  have  undone  the  scheme  of  immigra- 
tion that  had  cost  so  much  time  and  money.  Accordingly,  when 
this  movement  for  "  reform  "  began,  the  church  let  it  be  known 
that  any  desertion  of  the  flock  would  be  considered  the  worst  form 
of  apostasy,  and  that  the  deserter  must  take  the  consequences.  To 
quote  Brigham  Young's  own  words :  "  The  moment  a  person 
decides  to  leave  this  people,  he  is  cut  off  from  every  object  that  is 
desirable  for  time  and  eternity.     Every  possession  and  object  of 

1  "A  leading  Bishop  in  Salt  Lake  City  stated  to  the  author  that  Brigham  was  as 
much  appalled  at  this  sight  as  was  Macbeth  when  he  beheld  the  woods  of  Birnam  march- 
ing on  to  Dunsinane.  A  Bishop  arose  and  asked  if  there  were  not  some  misunderstand- 
ing among  the  brethren  concerning  the  question.  He  thought  that  perhaps  the  elders 
understood  Brigham's  inquiry  to  apply  to  their  conduct  before  they  had  thrown  off  the 
works  of  the  devil  and  embraced  Mormonism;  but  upon  Brigham  reiterating  that  it  was 
the  adultery  committed  since  they  had  entered  the  church,  the  brethren  to  a  man  still 
stood  up."  —  "  Rocky  Mountain  Saints,"  p.  296. 

2  "  Rocky  Mountain  Saints,"  p.  297. 


THE   "REFORMATION"  447 

affection  will  be  taken  from  those  who  forsake  the  truth,  and  their 
identity  and  existence  will  eventually  cease."  1 

The  almost  unbreakable  hedge  that  surrounded  the  inhabitants 
of  the  valley  at  this  time,  under  the  system  of  church  espionage, 
has  formed  a  subject  for  the  novelist,  and  has  seemed  to  many  per- 
sons, as  described,  a  probable  exaggeration.  But,  while  Young  did 
not  narrate  in  his  pulpit  the  tales  of  blood  which  his  instructions 
gave  rise  to,  there  is  testimony  concerning  them  which  leaves  no 
reasonable  doubt  of  their  truthfulness. 

1  Journal  of  Discourses,  Vol.  IV,  p.  31. 


CHAPTER  VIII 

SOME   CHURCH-INSPIRED  MURDERS 

The  murders  committed  during  the  "  Reformation  "  which  at- 
tracted most  attention,  both  because  of  the  parties  concerned,  the 
effort  made  by  a  United  States  judge  to  convict  the  guilty,  and 
the  confessions  of  the  latter  subsequently  obtained,  have  been  known 
as  the  Parrish,  or  Springville,  murders.  The  facts  concerning 
them  may  be  stated  fairly  as  follows :  — 

William  R.  Parrish  was  one  of  the  most  outspoken  champions 
of  the  Twelve  when  the  controversy  with  Rigdon  occurred  at 
Nauvoo  after  Smith's  death,  and  he  accompanied  the  fugitives 
to  Salt  Lake  Valley.  One  evening,  early  in  March,  1857,  a  Bishop 
named  Johnson  (husband  of  ten  wives),  with  two  companions, 
called  at  Parrish's  house  in  Springville,  and  put  to  him  some  of 
the  questions  which  the  inquisitors  of  the  day  were  wont  to  ask  — 
if  he  prayed,  something  about  his  future  plans,  etc.  It  had  been 
rumored  that  Parrish's  devotion  to  the  church  had  cooled,  and  that 
he  was  planning  to  move  with  his  family  —  a  wife  and  six  children 
—  to  California ;  and  at  a  meeting  in  Bishop  Johnson's  council  house 
a  letter  had  been  read  from  Brigham  Young  directing  them  to 
ascertain  the  intention  of  certain  suspicious  characters  in  the  neigh- 
borhood,1 "  and  if  they  should  make  a  break  and,  being  pursued, 
which  he  required,  he  '  would  be  sorry  to  hear  a  favorable  report ; 
but  the  better  way  is  to  lock  the  stable  door  before  the  horse  is 
stolen.'  This  letter  was  over  Brigham's  signature."  2  This  letter 
was  the  real  cause  of  the  Bishop's  visit  to  Parrish.  At  a  meeting 
about  a  week  later,  A.  Durfee  and  G.  Potter  were  deputed  to  find 

1  "  There  had  been  public  preaching  in  Springville  to  the  effect  that  no  Apostles 
would  be  allowed  to  leave;  if  they  did,  hog-holes  in  the  fences  would  be  stopped  up 
with  them.  I  heard  these  sermons."  —  Affidavit  of  Mrs.  Parrish;  appendix  to  "Speech 
of  Hon.  John  Cradlebaugh." 

2  Confession  of  J.  M.  Stewart,  one  of  the  Bishop's  counsellors  and  precinct  magis- 
trate. 

448 


SOME   CHURCH-INSPIRED   MURDERS 


449 


out  when  the  Parrishes  proposed  to  leave  the  territory.  Accord- 
ingly, Durfee  got  employment  with  Parrish,  and  both  of  them 
gave  him  the  idea  that  they  sympathized  with  his  desire  to  depart. 
One  morning,  about  a  week  later,  Parrish  discovered  that  his  horses 
had  been  stolen,  and  efforts  to  recover  them  were  fruitless. 

Meanwhile,  Parrish,  unsuspicious  of  Potter  and  Durfee,1  was 
telling  them  of  his  continued  plans  to  escape,  how  constantly  his 
house  was  watched,  and  how  difficult  it  was  for  him  to  get  out  the 
few  articles  required  for  the  trip.  Finally,  at  Parrish's  suggestion, 
it  was  arranged  that  he  and  Durfee  should  walk  out  of  the  village 
in  the  daytime,  as  the  method  best  calculated  to  allay  suspicion. 
They  carried  out  this  plan,  and  when  they  got  to  a  stream  called 
Dry  Creek,  Parrish  asked  Durfee  to  go  back  to  the  house  and 
bring  his  two  sons,  Beason  and  Orrin,  to  join  him.  When  Durfee 
returned  to  the  house,  at  about  sunset,  he  found  Potter  there, 
and  Potter  set  off  at  once  for  the  meeting-place,  ostensibly  to  carry 
some  of  the  articles  needed  for  the  journey. 

Potter  met  Parrish  where  he  was  waiting  for  Durfee's  return, 
and  they  walked  down  a  lane  to  a  fence  corner,  where  a  Mor- 
mon named  William  Bird  was  lying,  armed  with  a  gun.  Here 
occurred  what  might  be  called  an  illustration  of  "  poetic  justice." 
In  the  twilight,  Bird  mistook  his  victim,  and  fired,  killing  Potter. 
As  Bird  rose  and  stepped  forward,  Parrish  asked  if  it  was  he 
who  had  fired  the  unexpected  shot.  For  a  reply  Bird  drew  a  knife, 
clenched  with  Parrish,  and,  as  he  afterward  expressed  it,  "  worked 
the  best  he  could  in  stabbing  him."  He  "  worked  "  so  well  that, 
as  afterward  described  by  one  of  the  men  concerned  in  the  plot,2 
the  old  man  was  cut  all  over,  fifteen  times  in  the  back,  as  well  as 
in  the  left  side,  the  arms,  and  the  hands.  But  Bird  knew  that  his 
task  was  not  completed,  and,  as  soon  as  the  murder  of  the  elder 
Parrish  was  accomplished,  taking  his  own  and  Potter's  gun,  he 
again  concealed  himself  in  the  fence  corner,  awaiting  the  appear- 
ance of  the  Parrish  boys.  They  soon  came  up  in  company  with 
Durfee,  and  Bird  fired  at  Beason  with  so  good  aim  that  he  dropped 
dead  at  once.  Turning  the  weapon  on  Orrin,  the  first  cap  snapped, 
but  he  tried  again  and  put  a  ball  through  Orrin's  cartridge  box. 
The  lad  then  ran  and  found  refuge  in  the  house  of  an  uncle. 

1  Durfee's  confession,  appendix  to  Cradlebaugh's  speech. 

2  Affidavit  of  J.  Bartholemew  before  Judge  Cradlebaugh. 
2G 


450  THE   STORY   OF  THE   MORMONS 

The  outcome  of  this  crime  ?  The  arrest  of  Orrin  and  Durfee 
as  the  murderers  by  a  Mormon  officer ;  a  farcical  hearing  by  a 
coroner's  jury,  with  a  verdict  of  assassins  unknown ;  distrusted 
participants  in  the  crime  themselves  the  object  of  the  Mormon  spies 
and  would-be  assassins ;  the  robbery  of  a  neighbor  who  dared  to 
condemn  the  crime ;  a  vain  appeal  by  Mrs.  Parrish  to  Brigham 
Young,  who  told  her  he  "would  have  stopped  it  had  he  known 
anything  about  it,"  and  who,  when  she  persisted  in  seeking  another 
interview,  had  her  advised  to  "drop  it,"  and  a  failure  by  the  widow 
to  secure  even  the  stolen  horses.  "  The  wife  of  Mr.  Parrish  told 
me,"  said  Judge  Cradlebaugh,  when  he  charged  the  jury  concern- 
ing this  case,  "that  since  then  at  times  she  had  lived  on  bread 
and  water,  and  still  there  are  persons  in  this  community  riding 
about  on  those  horses." 

The  effort  to  have  the  men  concerned  in  this  and  similar  crimes 
convicted,  forms  a  part  of  the  history  of  Judge  Cradlebaugh's  judi- 
cial career  after  the  "  Mormon  War,"  but  it  failed.  When  the 
grand  jury  would  not  bring  in  indictments,  he  issued  bench  war- 
rants for  the  arrest  of  the  accused,  and  sent  the  United  States 
marshal,  sustained  by  a  military  posse,  to  serve  the  papers.  It 
was  thus  that  the  affidavits  and  confessions  cited  were  obtained. 
Then  followed  a  stampede  among  the  residents  of  the  Springville 
neighborhood,  as  the  judge  explained  in  his  subsequent  speech  in 
Congress,  the  church  officials  and  civil  officers  being  prominent  in 
the  flight,  and,  when  their  houses  were  reached,  they  were  occupied 
only  by  many  wives  and  many  children.  "  I  am  justified,"  he  told 
the  House  of  Representatives,  "  in  charging  that  the  Mormons  are 
guilty,  and  that  the  Mormon  church  is  guilty,  of  the  crimes  of 
murder  and  robbery,  as  taught  in  their  books  of  faith."  : 

Another  of  the  murders  under  this  dispensation,  which  Judge 
Cradlebaugh  mentioned  as  "  peculiarly  and  shockingly  prominent," 
was  that  of  the  Aikin  party,  in  the  spring  of  1857.     This  party, 

1  "  I  say  as  a  fact  that  there  was  no  escape  for  any  one  that  the  leaders  of  the 
church  in  southern  Utah  selected  as  a  victim.  ...  It  was  a  rare  thing  for  a  man  to 
escape  from  the  territory  with  all  his  property  until  after  the  Pacific  Railroad  was  built 
through  Utah."  —  Lee,  "  Mormonism  Unveiled,"  pp.  275,  2S7. 

Charles  Nordhoff,  in  a  Utah  letter  to  the  New  York  Evening  Post  in  May,  1871, 
said :  "  A  friend  said  to  me  this  afternoon,  '  I  saw  a  great  change  in  Salt  Lake  since  I 
was  there  three  years  ago.  The  place  is  free;  the  people  no  longer  speak  in  whispers. 
Three  years  ago  it  was  unsafe  to  speak  aloud  in  Salt  Lake  City  about  Mormonism,  and 
you  were  warned  to  be  cautious.' " 


SOME   CHURCH-INSPIRED   MURDERS  451 

consisting  of  six  men,  started  east  from  San  Francisco  in  May, 
1857,  and»  falling  in  with  a  Mormon  train,  joined  them  for  protec- 
tion against  the  Indians.  When  they  got  to  a  safer  neighborhood, 
the  Californians  pushed  on  ahead.  Arriving  in  Kayesville,  twenty- 
five  miles  north  of  Salt  Lake  City,  they  were  at  once  arrested  as 
federal  spies,  and  their  animals  (they  had  an  outfit  worth  in  all 
about  $25,000)  were  put  into  the  public  corral.  When  their  Mor- 
mon fellow-travellers  arrived,  they  scouted  the  idea  that  the  men 
even  knew  of  an  impending  "  war,"  and  the  party  were  told  that 
they  would  be  sent  out  of  the  territory.  But  before  they  started, 
a  council,  held  at  the  call  of  a  Bishop  in  Salt  Lake  City,  decided 
on  their  death. 

Four  of  the  party  were  attacked  in  camp  by  their  escort  while 
asleep ;  two  were  killed  at  once,  and  two  who  escaped  temporarily 
were  shot  while,  as  they  supposed,  being  escorted  back  to  Salt 
Lake  City.  The  two  others  were  attacked  by  O.  P.  Rockwell  and 
some  associates  near  the  city ;  one  was  killed  outright,  and  the 
other  escaped,  wounded,  and  was  shot  the  next  day  while  under 
the  escort  of  "Bill"  Hickman,  and,  according  to  the  latter,  by 
Young's  order. 1 

A  story  of  the  escape  of  one  man  from  the  valley,  notwith- 
standing elaborate  plans  to  prevent  his  doing  so,  has  been  pre- 
served, not  in  the  testimony  of  repentant  participants  in  his 
persecution,  but  in  his  own  words.2 

Frederick  Loba  was  a  prosperous  resident  of  Lausanne,  Swit- 
zerland, where  for  some  years  he  had  been  introducing  a  new 
principle  in  gas  manufacture,  when,  in  1853,  some  friends  called 
his  attention  to  the  Mormons'  professions  and  promises.  Loba 
was  induced  to  believe  that  all  mankind  who  did  not  gather  in 
Great  Salt  Lake  Valley  would  be  given  over  to  destruction,  and 
that,  not  only  would  his  soul  be  saved  by  moving  there,  but  that 
his  business  opportunities  would  be  greatly  advanced.  Accord- 
ingly he  gave  up  the  direction  of  the  gas  works  at  Lausanne,  and 
reached  St.  Louis  in  December,  1853,  with  about  $8000  worth  of 
property.  There  he  was  made  temporary  president  of  a  Mormon 
church,  and  there  he  got  his  first  bad  impression  of  the  Mormon 
brotherhood. 

1  "Brigham's  Destroying  Angel,"  p.  128. 

2  Leavenworth,  Kansas,  letter  to  New  York  Times,  published  May  I,  1858. 


452  THE   STORY   OF  THE  MORMONS 

On  the  way  to  Utah  his  wife  died  of  cholera,  leaving  six  chil- 
dren, from  six  to  twelve  years  old.  Welcomed  as  all  men  with 
property  were,  he  was  made  Professor  of  Chemistry  in  the  Uni- 
versity, and  soon  learned  many  of  the  church  secrets.  "These," 
to  quote  his  own  words,  "  opened  my  eyes  at  once,  and  I  saw  at  a 
glance  the  terrible  position  in  which  I  was  placed.  I  now  found 
myself  in  the  midst  of  a  wicked  and  degraded  people,  shut  up  in 
the  midst  of  the  mountains,  with  a  large  family,  and  deprived  of 
all  resources  with  which  to  extricate  myself.  The  conviction  had 
been  forced  upon  my  mind  that  Brigham  himself  was  at  the  bottom 
of  all  the  clandestine  assassinations,  plundering  of  trains,  and  rob- 
bing of  mails."  The  manner,  too,  in  which  polygamy  was  prac- 
tised aroused  his  intense  disgust. 

He  married  as  his  second  wife  an  English  woman,  and  his 
family  relations  were  pleasant ;  but  the  church  officers  were  dis- 
trustful of  him.  He  was  again  and  again  urged  to  marry  more 
wives,  being  assured  that  with  less  than  three  he  could  not  rise 
to  a  high  place  in  the  church.  "  This  neglect  on  my  part,"  he 
explained,  "  and  certain  remarks  that  I  made  with  respect  to 
Brigham's  friends,  determined  the  prophet  to  order  my  private 
execution,  as  I  am  able  to  prove  by  honest  and  competent  wit- 
nesses." Loba  adopted  every  precaution  for  his  own  safety,  night 
and  day.  Then  came  the  news  of  the  Parrish  murders,  and  there 
was  so  much  alarm  among  the  people  that  there  was  talk  of  the 
departure  of  a  great  many  of  the  dissatisfied.  To  check  this, 
when  the  plain  threats  made  in  the  Tabernacle  did  not  avail, 
Young  had  a  band  of  four  hundred  organized  under  the  name 
of  "  Wolf  Hunters "  (borrowed  from  their  old  Hancock  County 
neighbors),  whose  duty  it  was  to  see  that  "the  wolves"  did  not 
stray  abroad. 

Loba  now  communicated  his  fears  to  his  wife,  and  found  that 
she  also  realized  the  danger  of  their  position,  and  was  ready  to 
advise  the  risk  of  flight.  The  plan,  as  finally  decided  on,  was  that 
they  two  should  start  alone  on  April  I,  leaving  the  children  in 
care  of  the  wife's  mother  and  brother,  the  latter  a  recent  comer 
not  yet  initiated  in  the  church  mysteries. 

At  ten  o'clock  on  the  appointed  night  Loba  and  his  wife  — 
the  latter  dressed  in  men's  clothes  —  stole  out  of  their  house. 
Their  outfit  consisted  of  one  blanket,  twelve  pounds  of  crackers, 


SOME   CHURCH-INSPIRED   MURDERS  453 

a  little  tea  and  sugar,  a  double-barrelled  gun,  a  sword,  and  a  com- 
pass. They  were  without  horses,  and  their  route  compelled  them 
to  travel  the  main  road  for  twenty-five  miles  before  they  reached 
the  mountains,  amid  which  they  hoped  to  baffle  pursuit.  They 
were  fortunate  enough  to  gain  the  mountains  without  detention. 
There  they  laid  their  course,  not  with  a  view  to  taking  the  easiest 
or  most  direct  route,  but  one  so  far  up  the  mountain  sides  that 
pursuit  by  horsemen  would  be  impossible.  This  entailed  great 
suffering.  The  nights  were  so  cold  that  sometimes  they  feared 
to  sleep.  Add  to  this  the  necessity  of  wading  through  creeks  in 
ice-cold  water,  and  it  is  easy  to  understand  that  Loba  had  difficulty 
to  prevent  his  companion  from  yielding  to  despair. 

Their  objective  point  was  Greene  River  (170  miles  from  Salt 
Lake  City  by  road,  but  probably  almost  300  by  the  route  taken), 
where  they  expected  to  find  Indians  on  whose  mercy  they  would 
throw  themselves.  Two  days  before  that  river  was  reached  they 
ate  the  last  of  their  food,  and  they  kept  from  freezing  at  night  by 
getting  some  sage  wood  from  underneath  the  snow,  and  using 
Loba's  pocket  journal  for  kindling.  Mrs.  Loba  had  to  be  carried 
the  whole  of  the  last  six  miles,  but  this  effort  brought  them  to 
a  camp  of  Snake  Indians,  among  whom  were  some  Canadian 
traders,  and  there  they  received  a  kindly  welcome.  News  of  their 
escape  reached  Salt  Lake  City,  and  Surveyor  General  Burr  sent 
them  the  necessary  supplies  and  a  guide  to  conduct  them  to  Fort 
Laramie,  where,  a  month  later,  all  the  rest  of  the  family  joined 
them,  in  good  health,  but  entirely  destitute. 

They  then  learned  that,  as  soon  as  their  flight  was  discovered, 
the  church  authorities  sent  out  horsemen  in  every  direction  to 
intercept  them,  but  their  route  over  the  mountains  proved  their 
preservation.1 

1  Referring  to  the  frequent  Mormon  declarations  that  there  were  fewer  deeds  of  vio- 
lence in  Utah  than  in  other  pioneer  settlements  of  equal  population,  the  Salt  Lake 
Tribune  of  January  25,  1876,  said:  "It  is  estimated  that  no  less  than  600  murders 
have  been  committed  by  the  Mormons,  in  nearly  every  case  at  the  instigation  of  their 
priestly  leaders,  during  the  occupation  of  the  territory.  Giving  a  mean  average  of 
50,000  persons  professing  that  faith  in  Utah,  we  have  a  murder  committed  every  year  to 
every  2500  of  population.  The  same  ratio  of  crime  extended  to  the  population  of  the 
United  States  would  give  16,000  murders  every  year." 

The  Messenger,  the  organ  of  the  Reorganized  Church  in  Salt  Uake  City,  said  in 
November,  1875  :  "While  laying  the  waste  pipes  in  front  of  the  residence  of  Brigham 
Young  recently  the  skeleton  of  a  man  —  a  white  man  —  was  dug  up.  A  similar  discov- 
ery was  made  last  winter  in  digging  a  cellar  in  this  city.  What  can  have  been  the  neces- 
sity of  these  secret  burials,  without  coffins,  in  such  places?  " 


CHAPTER   IX 
BLOOD  ATONEMENT 

As  early  as  1853  intimations  of  the  doctrine  that  an  offending 
member  might  be  put  out  of  the  way  were  given  from  the  Taber- 
nacle pulpit.  Orson  Hyde,  on  April  9  of  that  year,  spoke,  in  the 
form  of  a  parable,  of  the  fate  of  a  wolf  that  a  shepherd  discovered 
in  his  flock  of  sheep,  saying  that,  if  let  alone,  he  would  go  off  and 
tell  the  other  wolves,  and  they  would  come  in ;  "  whereas,  if  the 
first  should  meet  with  his  just  deserts,  he  could  not  go  back  and 
tell  the  rest  of  his  hungry  tribe  to  come  and  feast  themselves  on 
the  flock.  If  you  say  the  priesthood,  or  authorities  of  the  church 
here,  are  the  shepherd,  and  the  church  is  the  flock,  you  can  make 
your  own  application  of  this  figure." 

In  September,  1856,  there  was  a  notable  service  in  the  bowery 
in  Salt  Lake  City  at  which  several  addresses  were  made.  Heber 
C.  Kimball  urged  repentance,  and  told  the  people  that  Brigham 
Young's  word  was  "the  word  of  God  to  this  people."  Then 
Jedediah  M.  Grant  first  gave  open  utterance  to  a  doctrine  that  has 
given  the  Saints,  in  late  years,  much  trouble  to  explain,  and  the 
carrying  out  of  which  in  Brigham  Young's  days  has  required  many 
a  Mormon  denial.  This  is  what  has  been  called  in  Utah  the  doc- 
trine of  "blood  atonement,"  and  what  in  reality  was  the  doctrine 
of  human  sacrifice. 

Grant  declared  that  some  persons  who  had  received  the  priest- 
hood committed  adultery  and  other  abominations,  "  get  drunk,  and 
wallow  in  the  mire  and  filth."  "I  say,"  he  continued,  "there 
are  men  and  women  that  I  would  advise  to  go  to  the  President 
immediately,  and  ask  him  to  appoint  a  committee  to  attend  to 
their  case ;  and  then  let  a  place  be  selected,  and  let  that  committee 
shed  their  blood.  We  have  those  amongst  us  that  are  full  of  all 
manner  of  abominations ;  those  who  need  to  have  their  blood  shed, 

454 


BLOOD   ATONEMENT  455 

for  water  will  not  do ;  their  sins  are  too  deep  for  that."  He 
explained  that  he  was  only  preaching  the  doctrine  of  St.  Paul, 
and  continued :  "  I  would  ask  how  many  covenant  breakers  there 
are  in  this  city  and  in  this  kingdom.  I  believe  that  there  are  a 
great  many ;  and  if  they  are  covenant  breakers,  we  need  a  place 
designated  where  we  can  shed  their  blood.  ...  If  any  of  you 
ask,  Do  I  mean  you,  I  answer  yes.  If  any  woman  asks,  Do  I 
mean  her,  I  answer  yes.  .  .  .  We  have  been  trying  long  enough 
with  these  people,  and  I  go  in  for  letting  the  sword  of  the 
Almighty  be  unsheathed,  not  only  in  word,  but  in  deed."2 

Brigham  Young,  who  followed  Grant,  said  that  he  would 
explain  how  judgment  would  be  "  laid  to  the  line."  "  There  are 
sins,"  he  explained,  "that  men  commit,  for  which  they  cannot 
receive  forgiveness  in  this  world  nor  in  that  which  is  to  come ; 
and,  if  they  had  their  eyes  open  to  see  their  true  condition,  they 
would  be  perfectly  willing  to  have  their  blood  spilt  upon  the  ground, 
that  the  smoke  thereof  might  ascend  to  heaven  for  their  sins.  .  . 
I  know,  when  you  hear  my  brethren  telling  about  cutting  people 

1  Elder  C.  W.  Penrose  made  an  explanation  of  the  view  taken  by  the  church  at  that 
time,  in  an  address  in  Salt  Lake  City  on  October  12,  1884,  that  was  published  in  a 
pamphlet  entitled  "  Blood  Atonement  as  taught  by  Leading  Elders."  This  was 
deemed  necessary  to  meet  the  criticisms  of  this  doctrine.  He  pleaded  misrepresentation 
of  the  Saints'  position,  and  defined  it  as  resting  on  Christ's  atonement,  and  on  the  belief 
that  that  atonement  would  suffice  only  for  those  who  have  fellowship  with  Him.  He 
quoted  St.  Paul  as  authority  for  the  necessity  of  blood  shedding  (Hebrews  ix.  22),  and 
Matthew  xii.  31,  32,  and  Hebrews  x.  26,  to  show  that  there  are  sins,  like  blasphemy 
against  the  Holy  Ghost,  which  will  not  be  forgiven  through  the  shedding  of  Christ's 
blood.  He  also  quoted  1  John  v.  16  as  showing  that  the  apostle  and  Brigham  Young  were 
in  agreement  concerning  "sins  unto  death,"  just  as  Young  and  the  apostle  agreed  about 
delivering  men  unto  Satan  that  their  spirits  might  be  saved  through  the  destruction  of 
their  flesh  (1  Corinthians  v.  5).  Having  justified  the  teaching  to  his  satisfaction,  he  pro- 
ceeded to  challenge  proof  that  any  one  had  ever  paid  the  penalty,  coupling  with  this  a 
denial  of  the  existence  of  Danites. 

Elder  Hyde,  in  his  "  Mormonism,"  says  (p.  179)  :  "  There  are  several  men  now  living 
in  Utah  whose  lives  are  forfeited  by  Mormon  law,  but  spared  for  a  little  time  by  Mormon 
policy.  They  are  certain  to  be  killed,  and  they  know  it.  They  are  only  allowed  to  live 
while  they  add  weight  and  influence  to  Mormonism,  and,  although  abundant  opportu- 
nities are  given  them  for  escape,  they  prefer  to  remain.  So  strongly  are  they  infatuated 
with  their  religion  that  they  think  their  salvation  depends  on  their  continued  obedience, 
and  their  'blood  being  shed  by  the  servants  of  God.'  Adultery  is  punished  by  death, 
and  it  is  taught,  unless  the  adulterer's  blood  be  shed,  he  can  have  no  remission  for  this 
sin.  Believing  this  firmly,  there  are  men  who  have  confessed  this  crime  to  Brigham,  and 
asked  him  to  have  them  killed.  Their  superstitious  fears  make  life  a  burden  to  them, 
and  they  would  commit  suicide  were  not  that  also  a  crime." 

2  Journal  of  Discourses,  Vol.  IV,  pp.  49,  50. 


456  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

off  from  the  earth,  that  you  consider  it  a  strong  doctrine  ;  but  it  is 
to  save  them,  not  to  destroy  them." 

That  these  were  not  the  mere  expressions  of  a  sudden  impulse 
is  shown  by  the  fact  that  Young  expounded  this  doctrine  at  even 
greater  length  a  year  later.  Explaining  what  Christ  meant  by 
loving  our  neighbors  as  ourselves,  he  said :  "  Will  you  love  your 
brothers  and  sisters  likewise  when  they  have  committed  a  sin  that 
cannot  be  atoned  for  without  the  shedding  of  blood  ?  Will  you 
love  that  man  or  woman  well  enough  to  shed  their  blood  ?  That  is 
what  Jesus  Christ  meant.  ...  I  have  seen  scores  and  hundreds 
of  people  for  whom  there  would  have  been  a  chance  (in  the  last  res- 
urrection there  will  be)  if  their  lives  had  been  taken,  and  their 
blood  spilled  on  the  ground  as  a  smoking  incense  to  the  Almighty, 
but  who  are  now  angels  to  the  devil."  1 

Stenhouse  relates,  as  one  of  the  "  few  notable  cases  that  have 
properly  illustrated  the  blood  atonement  doctrine,"  that  one  of  the 
wives  of  an  elder  who  was  sent  on  a  mission  broke  her  marriage 
vows  during  his  absence.  On  his  return,  during  the  height  of  the 
"  Reformation,"  she  was  told  that  "  she  could  not  reach  the  circle 
of  the  gods  and  goddesses  unless  her  blood  was  shed,"  and  she 
consented  to  accept  the  punishment.  Seating  herself,  therefore, 
on  her  husband's  knee,  she  gave  him  a  last  kiss,  and  he  then  drew 
a  knife  across  her  throat.  "  That  kind  and  loving  husband  still 
lives  near  Salt  Lake  City  (1874),  and  preaches  occasionally  with 
great  zeal."2 

John  D.  Lee,  who  says  that  this  doctrine  was  "justified  by  all 
the  people,"  gives  full  particulars  of  another  instance.  Among 
the  Danish  converts  in  Utah  was  Rosmos  Anderson,  whose  wife 
had  been  a  widow  with  a  grown  daughter.  Anderson  desired  to 
marry  his  step-daughter  also,  and  she  was  quite  willing ;  but 
a  member  of  the  Bishop's  council  wanted  the  girl  for  his  wife, 
and  he  was  influential  enough  to  prevent  Anderson  from  getting 
the  necessary  consent  from  the  head  of  the  church.  Knowing  the 
professed  horror  of  the  church  toward  the  crime  of  adultery, 
Anderson  and  the  young  woman,  at  one  of  the  meetings  during 
the  "  Reformation,"  confessed  their  guilt  of  that  crime,  thinking 
that  in  this  way  they  would  secure  permission  to  marry.     But, 

1  Journal  of  Discourses,  Vol.  IV,  pp.  219,  220. 

2  "  Rocky  Mountain  Saints,"  p.  470. 


BLOOD  ATONEMENT  457 

while  they  were  admitted  to  rebaptism  on  their  confession,  the  cov- 
eted permit  was  not  issued,  and  they  were  notified  that  to  offend 
again  would  be  to  incur  death.  Such  a  charge  was  very  soon  laid 
against  Anderson  (not  against  the  girl),  and  the  same  council,  with- 
out hearing  him,  decided  that  he  must  die.  Anderson  was  so  firm 
in  the  Mormon  faith  that  he  made  no  remonstrance,  simply  asking 
half  a  day  for  preparation.  His  wife  provided  clean  clothes  for 
the  sacrifice,  and  his  executioners  dug  his  grave.  At  midnight 
they  called  for  him,  and,  taking  him  to  the  place,  allowed  him  to 
kneel  by  the  grave  and  pray.  Then  they  cut  his  throat,  "and  held 
him  so  that  his  blood  ran  into  the  grave."  His  wife,  obeying 
instructions,  announced  that  he  had  gone  to  California.1 

As  an  illustration  of  the  opportunity  which  these  times  gave 
a  polygamous  priesthood  to  indulge  their  tastes,  may  be  told  the 
story  of  "  the  affair  at  San  Pete."  Bishop  Warren  Snow  of 
Manti,  San  Pete  County,  although  the  husband  of  several  wives, 
desired  to  add  to  his  list  a  good-looking  young  woman  in  that  town. 
When  he  proposed  to  her,  she  declined  the  honor,  informing  him 
that  she  was  engaged  to  a  younger  man.  The  Bishop  argued  with 
her  on  the  ground  of  her  duty,  offering  to  have  her  lover  sent  on  a 
mission,  but  in  vain.  When  even  the  girl's  parents  failed  to  gain 
her  consent,  Snow  directed  the  local  church  authorities  to  com- 
mand the  young  man  to  give  her  up.  Finding  him  equally  obsti- 
nate, he  was  one  evening  summoned  to  attend  a  meeting  where 
only  trusted  members  were  present.  Suddenly  the  lights  were 
put  out,  he  was  beaten  and  tied  to  a  bench,  and  Bishop  Snow  him- 
self castrated  him  with  a  bowie  knife.  In  this  condition  he  was 
left  to  crawl  to  some  haystacks,  where  he  lay  until  discovered. 
"The  young  man  regained  his  health,"  says  Lee,  "but  has  been 
an  idiot  or  quiet  lunatic  ever  since,  and  is  well  known  by  hundreds 
of  Mormons  or  Gentiles  in  Utah."2  And  the  Bishop  married  the 
girl.  Lee  gives  Young  credit  for  being  very  "  mad  "  when  he 
learned  of  this  incident,  but  the  Bishop  was  not  even  deposed.3 

1  "  Mormonism  Unveiled,"  p.  282.  2  Ibid.,  p.  285. 

3  Stenhouse  quotes  the  following  as  showing  that  the  San  Pete  outrage  was  scarcely 
concealed  by  the  Mormon  authorities :  "  I  was  at  a  Sunday  meeting,  in  the  spring  of 
1857,  in  Provo,  when  the  news  of  the  San  Pete  incident  was  referred  to  by  the  presiding 
Bishop,  Blackburn.  Some  men  in  Provo  had  rebelled  against  authority  in  some  trivial 
matter,  and  Blackburn  shouted  in  his  Sunday  meeting — a  mixed  congregation  of  all 
ages  and  both  sexes :  '  I  want  the  people  of  Provo  to  understand  that  the  boys  in  Provo 
can  use  the  knife  as  well  as  the  boys  in  San  Pete.  Boys,  get  your  knives  ready.' "  — 
"  Rocky  Mountain  Saints,"  p.  302. 


CHAPTER    X 

THE   TERRITORIAL   GOVERNMENT— JUDGE   BROCCHUS'S 
EXPERIENCE 

In  March,  1851,  the  two  houses  of  the  legislature  of  Deseret, 
sitting  together,  adopted  resolutions  "  cheerfully  and  cordially " 
accepting  the  law  providing  a  territorial  government  for  Utah,  and 
tendering  Union  Square  in  Salt  Lake  City  as  a  site  for  the  gov- 
ernment buildings.  The  first  territorial  election  was  held  on 
August  4,  and  the  legislative  assembly  then  elected  held  its  first 
meeting  on  September  22.  An  act  was  at  once  passed  continuing 
in  force  the  laws  passed  by  the  legislature  of  Deseret  (an  unau- 
thorized body)  not  in  conflict  with  the  territorial  law,  and  locating 
the  capital  in  the  Pauvan  Valley,  where  the  town  was  afterward 
named  Fillmore  1  and  the  county  Millard,  in  honor  of  the  President. 

The  federal  law,  establishing  the  territory,  provided  that  the 
governor,  secretary,  chief  justice  and  two  associate  justices  of  the 
Supreme  Court,  the  attorney  general,  or  state's  attorney,  and  mar- 
shal should  be  appointed  by  the  President  of  the  United  States. 
President  Fillmore  on  September  28,  1850,  filled  these  places  as 
follows :  governor,  Brigham  Young ;  secretary,  B.  D.  Harris  of 
Vermont ;  chief  justice,  Joseph  Buffington  of  Pennsylvania  ;  asso- 
ciate justices,  Perry  E.  Brocchus  and  Zerubbabel  Snow ;  attorney 
general,  Seth  M.  Blair  of  Utah;  marshal,  J.  L.  Heywood  of  Utah, 
Young,  Snow,  Blair,  and  Heywood  being  Mormons.  L.  G.  Brande- 
bury  was  later  appointed  chief  justice,  Mr.  Buffington  declining 
that  office. 

The  selection  of  Brigham  Young  as  governor  made  him,  in 
addition  to  his  church  offices,  ex-officio  commander-in-chief  of 
the  militia  and  superintendent  of  Indian  affairs,  the  latter  giving 

1  Only  one  session  of  the  legislature  was  held  at  Fillmore  (December,  1855).  The 
lawmakers  afterward  met  there,  but  only  to  adjourn  to  Salt  Lake  City. 

458 


THE  TERRITORIAL   GOVERNMENT  459 

him  a  salary  of  $1000  a  year  in  addition  to  his  salary  of  $1500  as 
governor.  Had  the  character  of  the  Mormon  church  government 
been  understood  by  President  Fillmore,  it  does  not  seem  possible 
that  he  would,  by  Young's  appointment,  have  so  completely  united 
the  civil  and  religious  authority  of  the  territory  in  one  man  ;  or, 
if  he  had  had  any  comprehension  of  Young's  personal  character- 
istics, it  is  fair  to  conclude  that  the  appointment  would  not  have 
been  made. 

The  voice  which  the  President  listened  to  in  the  matter  was 
that  of  that  adroit  Mormon  agent,  Colonel  Thomas  L.  Kane. 
Kane's  part  in  the  business  came  out  after  these  appointments 
were  announced,  and  after  the  Buffalo  (New  York)  Courier  had 
printed  a  communication  attacking  Young's  character  on  the 
ground  of  his  record  both  in  Illinois  and  Utah.  President  Fill- 
more sent  these  charges  to  Kane  (on  July  4,  185 1)  with  a  letter 
in  which  he  said,  "  You  will  recollect  that  I  relied  much  upon 
you  for  the  moral  character  of  Mr.  Young,"  and  asking  him  to 
"  truly  state  whether  these  charges  against  the  moral  character  of 
Governor  Young  are  true."  Kane  sent  two  letters  in  reply,  dated 
July  11.  In  a  short  open  one  he  said:  "I  reiterate  without  re- 
serve the  statement  of  his  excellent  capacity,  energy,  and  integrity, 
which  I  made  you  prior  to  the  appointment.  I  am  willing  to  say 
that  I  volunteered  to  communicate  to  you  the  facts  by  which  I  was 
convinced  of  his  patriotism  and  devotion  to  the  Union.  I  made 
no  qualification  when  I  assured  you  of  his  irreproachable  moral 
character,  because  I  was  able  to  speak  of  this  from  my  own  inti- 
mate personal  knowledge." 

The  second  letter,  marked  "  personal,"  went  into  these  matters 
much  more  in  detail.  It  declared  that  the  tax  levied  by  Young  on 
non-Mormons  who  sold  goods  in  Salt  Lake  City  was  a  liquor  tax, 
creditable  to  Mormon  temperance  principles.  Had  the  President 
consulted  the  report  of  the  debate  on  Babbitt's  admission  as  a 
Delegate,  he  would  have  discovered  that  this  was  falsehood  num- 
ber one.  The  charges  against  Young  while  in  Illinois,  including 
counterfeiting,  Kane  swept  aside  as  "  a  mere  rehash  of  old  libels," 
and  he  cited  the  Battalion  as  an  illustration  of  Mormon  patriotism. 
The  extent  to  which  he  could  go  in  falsifying  in  Young's  behalf 
is  illustrated,  however,  most  pointedly  in  what  he  had  to  say 
regarding  the  charge  of  polygamy  :  "  The  remaining  charge  con- 


460  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

nects  itself  with  that  unmixed  outrage,  the  spiritual  wife  story, 
which  was  fastened  on  the  Mormons  by  a  poor  ribald  scamp 
whom,  though  the  sole  surviving  brother  and  representative  of 
their  Jo.  Smith,  they  were  literally  forced  to  excommunicate 
for  licentiousness,  and  who  therefore  revenged  himself  by  editing 
confessions  and  disclosures  of  savor  to  please  the  public  that  pe- 
ruses novels  in  yellow  paper  covers."1  In  regard  to  William 
Smith,  the  fact  was  that  he  opposed  polygamy  both  before  and 
after  his  expulsion  from  the  church.  Kane's  stay  among  the 
Mormons  on  the  Missouri  must  have  acquainted  him  with  the 
practically  open  practice  of  polygamy  at  that  time.  His  entire 
correspondence  with  Fillmore  stamps  him  as  a  man  whose  word 
could  be  accepted  on  no  subject.  It  would  have  been  well  if 
President  Buchanan  had  availed  himself  of  the  existence  of  these 
letters.  Fillmore  stated  in  later  years  that  at  that  time  neither  he 
nor  the  Senate  knew  that  polygamy  was  an  accepted  Mormon 
doctrine. 

Young  took  the  oath  of  office  as  governor  in  February,  1851. 
The  non-Mormon  federal  officers  arrived  in  June  and  July  follow- 
ing, and  with  them  came  Babbitt,  bringing  $20,000  which  had 
been  appropriated  by  Congress  for  a  state-house,  and  J.  M.  Bern- 
hisel,  the  first  territorial  Delegate  to  Congress,  with  a  library  pur- 
chased by  him  in  the  East  for  which  Congress  had  provided.  The 
arrival  of  the  Gentile  officers  gave  a  speedy  opportunity  to  test  the 
temper  of  the  church  in  regard  to  any  interference  with,  or  even 
discussion  of,  their  "  peculiar  "  institutions  or  Young's  authority. 

Their  first  welcome  was  cordial,  with  balls  and  dinners  at  the 
Bath  House  at  the  Hot  Springs  at  which,  for  their  special  benefit, 
says  a  local  historian,  was  served  "  champagne  wine  from  the  gro- 
cery," with  home-brewed  porter  and  ale  for  the  rest.  When  Judge 
Brocchus  reached  Salt  Lake  City,  his  two  non-Mormon  associates 
had  been  there  long  enough  to  form  an  opinion  of  the  Mormon 
population  and  of  the  aims  of  the  leading  church  officers.  They 
soon  concluded  that  "  no  man  else  could  govern  them  against  Brig- 
ham  Young's  influence,  without  a  military  force,"2  and  they 
heard   many  expressions,  public  and  private,  indicating  the  con- 

1  For  correspondence  in  full,  see  Millennial  Star,  Vol.  XIII,  pp.  341-344. 

2  Report  of  the  three  officers  to  President  Fillmore,  Ex.  Doc.  No.  25,  1st  Session, 
32d  Congress. 


THE   TERRITORIAL   GOVERNMENT  461 

tempt  in  which  the  federal  government  was  held.  The  anniver- 
sary of  the  arrival  of  the  pioneers,  July  24,  was  always  celebrated 
with  much  ceremony,  and  that  year  the  principal  addresses  were 
made  by  "General"  D.  H.  Wells  and  Brigham  Young.  Some  of 
the  new  officers  occupied  seats  on  the  platform.  Wells  attacked 
the  government  for  "  requiring  "  the  Battalion  to  enlist.  Young 
paid  especial  attention  to  President  Taylor,  who  had  recently  died, 
and  whose  course  toward  the  Mormons  did  not  please  them,  clos- 
ing this  part  of  his  remarks  with  the  declaration,  "  but  Zachary 
Taylor  is  dead  and  in  hell,  and  I  am  glad  of  it,"  adding,  "  and  I 
prophesy  in  the  name  of  Jesus  Christ,  by  the  power  of  the  priest- 
hood that's  upon  me,  that  any  President  of  the  United  States  who 
lifts  his  finger  against  this  people,  shall  die  an  untimely  death,  and 
go  to  hell." 

Judge  Brocchus  had  been  commissioned  by  the  Washington 
Monument  Association  to  ask  the  people  of  the  territory  for  a 
block  of  stone  for  that  structure,  and,  on  signifying  a  desire  to 
make  known  his  commission,  he  was  invited  to  do  so  at  the  Gen- 
eral Conference  to  be  held  on  September/  and  8.  The  judge 
thought  that,  with  the  life  of  Washington  as  a  text,  he  could  read 
these  people  a  lesson  on  their  duty  toward  the  government,  and 
could  correct  some  of  the  impressions  under  which  they  rested. 
The  idea  itself  only  showed  how  little  he  understood  anything  per- 
taining to  Mormonism. 

There  was  no  newspaper  in  Salt  Lake  City  in  that  time,  and 
for  a  report  of  the  judge's  address  and  of  Brigham  Young's  reply, 
we  must  rely  on  the  report  of  the  three  federal  officers  to  Presi- 
dent Fillmore,  on  a  letter  from  Judge  Brocchus  printed  in  the  East, 
and  on  three  letters  on  the  subject  addressed  to  the  New  York 
Herald  (one  of  which  that  journal  printed,  and  all  of  which  the 
author  published  in  a  pamphlet  entitled  "  The  Truth  for  the  Mor- 
mons") by  J.  M.  Grant,  first  mayor  of  Salt  Lake  City,  major 
general  of  the  Legion,  and  Speaker  of  the  house  in  the  Deseret 
legislature. 

Judge  Brocchus  spoke  for  two  hours.  He  began  with  expres- 
sions of  sympathy  for  the  sufferings  of  the  Mormons  in  Missouri 
and  Illinois,  and  then  referred  to  the  unfriendliness  of  the  people 
toward  the  federal  government,  pointing  out  what  he  considered 
its  injustice,  and  alluding  pointedly  to  Brigham  Young's  remarks 


462  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

about  President  Taylor.  He  defended  the  President's  memory, 
and  told  his  audience  that,  "  if  they  could  not  offer  a  block  of 
marble  for  the  Washington  Monument  in  a  feeling  of  full  fellow- 
ship with  the  people  of  the  United  States,  as  brethren  and  fellow- 
citizens,  they  had  better  not  offer  it  at  all,  but  leave  it  unquarried 
in  the  bosom  of  its  native  mountain."  The  officers'  report  to  Presi- 
dent Fillmore  says  that  the  address  "  was  entirely  free  from  any 
allusions,  even  the  most  remote,  to  the  peculiar  religion  of  the 
community,  or  to  any  of  their  domestic  or  social  customs."  Even 
if  the  Mormons  had  so  construed  it,  the  rebuke  of  their  lack  of 
patriotism  would  have  aroused  their  resentment,  and  Bernhisel,  in 
a  letter  to  President  Fillmore,  characterized  it  as  "  a  wanton  insult." 

But  the  judge  did  make,  according  to  other  reports,  what  was 
construed  as  an  uncomplimentary  reference  to  polygamy,  and  this 
stirred  the  church  into  a  tumult  of  anger  and  indignation.  Accord- 
ing to  Mormon  accounts,1  the  judge,  addressing  the  ladies,  said: 
"  I  have  a  commission  from  the  Washington  Monument  Associa- 
tion, to  ask  of  you  a  block  of  marble,  as  a  test  of  your  citizenship 
and  loyalty  to  the  government  of  the  United  States.  But  in  order 
to  do  it  acceptably  you  must  become  virtuous,  and  teach  your 
daughters  to  become  virtuous,  or  your  offering  had  better  remain 
in  the  bosom  of  your  native  mountains." 

Mild  as  this  language  may  seem,  no  Mormon  audience,  since 
the  marrying  of  more  wives  than  one  had  been  sanctioned  by  the 
church,  had  ever  listened  to  anything  like  it.  To  permit  even  this 
interference  with  their  "  religious  belief  "  was  entirely  foreign  to 
Young's  purpose,  and  he  took  the  floor  in  a  towering  rage  to  reply. 
"  Are  you  a  judge,"  he  asked,  "and  can't  even  talk  like  a  lawyer 
or  a  politician?"  George  Washington  was  first  in  war,  but  he 
was  first  in  peace,  too,  and  Young  could  handle  a  sword  as  well  as 
Washington.  "But  you  [addressing  the  judge]  standing  there, 
white  and  shaking  now  at  the  howls  which  you  have  stirred  up 
yourself  —  you  are  a  coward.  .  .  .  Old  General  Taylor,  what  was 
he  ? 2     A  mere  soldier  with  regular  army  buttons    on ;  no   better 

1  The  report  of  what  follows,  including  Young's  address,  is  taken  from  Grant's 
pamphlet. 

2  In  a  discourse  on  June  19,  1853,  Young  said  that  he  never  heard  of  his  alleged 
expression  about  General  Taylor  until  Judge  Brocchus  made  use  of  it,  but  he  added : 
"  When  he  made  the  statement  there,  I  surely  bore  testimony  to  the  truth  of  it.  But 
until  then  I  do  not  know  that  it  ever  came  into  my  mind  whether  Taylor  was  in  hell  or 


THE   TERRITORIAL   GOVERNMENT  463 

to  go  at  the  head  of  brave  troops  than  a  dozen  I  could  pick  out 
between  here  and  Laramie."     He  concluded  thus  :  — 

"  What  you  have  been  afraid  to  intimate  about  our  morals  I  will  not  stoop  to 
notice,  except  to  make  my  particular  personal  request  to  every  brother  and  hus- 
band present  not  to  give  you  back  what  such  impudence  deserves.  You  talk  of 
things  'you  have  on  hearsay  '  since  your  coming  among  us.  Til  talk  of  hearsay 
then  —  the  hearsay  that  you  are  discontented,  and  will  go  home,  because  we  can- 
not make  it  worth  your  while  to  stay.  What  it  would  satisfy  you  to  get  out  of  us 
I  think  it  would  be  hard  to  tell ;  but  I  am  sure  that  it  is  more  than  you'll  get.  If 
you  or  any  one  else  is  such  a  baby-calf,  we  must  sugar  your  soap  to  coax  you  to 
wash  yourself  of  Saturday  nights.  Go  home  to  your  mammy  straight  away,  and 
the  sooner  the  better." 

This  was  the  language  addressed  by  the  governor  of  the  terri- 
tory and  the  head  of  the  church,  to  one  of  the  Supreme  Court 
judges  appointed  by  the  President  of  the  United  States ! 

Young  alluded  to  his  reference  to  the  judge's  personal  safety 
in  a  discourse  on  June  19,  1853,  in  which,  speaking  of  the  judge's 
remarks,  he  said  :  "  They  [the  Mormons]  bore  the  insult  like  saints 
of  God.  It  is  true,  as  it  was  said  in  the  report  of  these  affairs,  if 
I  had  crooked  my  little  finger,  he  would  have  been  used  up,  but  I 
did  not  bend  it.  If  I  had,  the  sisters  alone  felt  indignant  enough 
to  have  chopped  him  in  pieces."  A  little  later,  in  the  same  dis- 
course, he  added :  "  Every  man  that  comes  to  impose  on  this  peo- 
ple, no  matter  by  whom  they  are  sent,  or  who  they  are  that  are 
sent,  lay  the  axe  at  the  root  of  the  tree  to  kill  themselves.  I  will 
do  as  I  said  I  would  last  conference.  Apostates,  or  men  who  {/ 
never  made  any  profession  of  religion,  had  better  be  careful  how 
they  come  here,  lest  I  should  bend  my  little  finger."1 

If  the  records  of  the  Mormon  church  had  included  acts  as  well 
as  words,  how  many  times  would  we  find  that  Young's  little  finger 
was  bent  to  a  purpose  ? 

Bold  as  he  was,  Young  seems  to  have  felt  that  he  had  gone 
too  far  in  his  abuse  of  Judge  Brocchus,  and  on  September  19  he 
addressed  a  note  to  him,  inviting  him  to  attend  a  public  meeting 
in  the  bowery  the  next  Sunday  morning,  "  to  explain,  satisfy,  or 
apologize  to  the  satisfaction  of  the  ladies  who  heard  your  address 
on  the  8th,"  a  postscript  assuring  the  judge  that  "no  gentleman 

not,  any  more  than  it  did  that  any  other  wicked  man  was  there,"  etc.  —  Journal  of  Dis- 
courses, Vol.  I,  p.  185. 

1  Journal  of  Discourses,  Vol.  I,  p.  187. 


464  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

will  be  permitted  to  make  any  reply."  The  judge  in  polite  terms 
declined  this  offer,  saying  that  he  had  been,  at  the  proper  time, 
denied  a  chance  to  explain,  "  at  the  peril  of  having  my  hair  pulled 
or  my  throat  cut."  He  added  that  his  speech  was  deliberately 
prepared,  that  his  sole  design  was  "to  vindicate  the  government 
of  the  United  States  from  those  feelings  of  prejudice  and  that 
spirit  of  defection  which  seemed  to  pervade  the  public  sentiment," 
and  that  he  had  had  no  intention  to  offer  insult  or  disrespect  to 
his  audience.  This  called  out,  the  next  day,  a  very  long  reply 
from  Young,  of  which  the  following  is  a  paragraph  :  — 

"  With  a  war  of  words  on  party  politics,  factions,  religious  schisms,  current 
controversy  of  creeds,  policy  of  clans  or  state  clipper  cliques,  I  have  nothing  to 
do  ;  but  when  the  eternal  principles  of  truth  are  falsified,  and  light  is  turned  into 
darkness  by  mystification  of  language  or  a  false  delineation  of  facts,  so  that  the 
just  indignation  of  the  true,  virtuous,  upright  citizens  of  the  commonwealth  is 
aroused  into  vigilance  for  the  dear-bought  liberties  of  themselves  and  fathers,  and 
that  spirit  of  intolerance  and  persecution  which  has  driven  this  people  time  and 
time  again  from  their  peaceful  homes,  manifests  itself  in  the  flippancy  of  rhetoric 
for  female  insult  and  desecration,  it  is  time  that  I  forbear  to  hold  my  peace,  lest 
the  thundering  anathemas  of  nations,  born  and  unborn,  should  rest  upon  my 
head,  when  the  marrow  of  my  bones  shall  be  illy  prepared  to  sustain  the  threat- 
ened blow." 1 

Judge  Brocchus  wrote  to  a  friend  in  the  East,  on  September 
20 :  "  How  it  will  end,  I  do  not  know.  I  have  just  learned  that  I 
have  been  denounced,  together  with  the  government  and  officers, 
in  the  bowery  again  to-day  by  Governor  Young.  I  hope  I  shall 
get  off  safely.  God  only  knows.  I  am  in  the  power  of  a  desper- 
ate and  murderous  sect." 

The  non-Mormon  federal  officers  now  announced  their  deter- 
mination to  abandon  their  places  and  return  to  the  East.  Young 
foresaw  that  so  radical  a  course  would  give  his  conduct  a  wide 
advertisement,  and  attract  to  him  an  unpleasant  notoriety.  He, 
therefore,  called  on  the  offended  judges  personally,  and  urged 
them  to  remain.2  Being  assured  that  they  would  not  reconsider 
their  determination,  and  that  Secretary  Harris  would  take  with 
him  the  $24,000  appropriated  for  the  pay  and  mileage  of  the  ter- 
ritorial legislature,  Young,  on  September  18,  issued  a  proclama- 
tion declaring  the  result  of  the  election  of  August  4,  which  he  had 

1  For  correspondence  in  full,  see  Tullidge's  "  History  of  Salt  Lake  City,"  pp.  86-91. 

2  Young  to  the  President,  House  Doc.  No.  25,  1st  Session,  32d  Congress. 


THE   TERRITORIAL  GOVERNMENT  465 

neglected  to  do,  and  convening  the  legislature  in  session  on  Sep- 
tember 22.  "  So  solicitous  was  the  governor  that  the  secretary 
and  other  [non-Mormon]  officers  should  be  kept  in  ignorance  of 
this  step,"  says  the  report  of  the  latter  to  President  Fillmore,  "  that 
on  the  19th,  two  days  after  the  date  [of  a  personal  notice  sent  to 
members],  he  most  positively  and  emphatically  denied,  as  com- 
municated to  the  secretary,  that  any  such  notice  had  been  issued." 

As  soon  as  the  legislature  met,  it  passed  resolutions  directing 
the  United  States  marshal  to  take  possession  of  all  papers  and 
property  (including  money)  in  the  hands  of  Secretary  Harris,  and 
to  arrest  him  and  lock  him  up  if  he  offered  any  resistance.  On 
receipt  of  a  copy  of  this  resolution,  Secretary  Harris  sent  a  reply, 
giving  several  reasons  for  refusing  to  hand  over  the  money  appro- 
priated for  the  legislature,  among  them  the  failure  of  the  governor 
to  have  a  census  taken  before  the  election,  as  provided  by  the  ter- 
ritorial act,  the  defective  character  of  the  governor's  proclamation 
ordering  the  election,  allowing  aliens  to  vote,  and  the  governor's 
failure  to  declare  the  result  of  the  election,  his  delayed  proclama- 
tion being  pronounced  "  worthless  for  all  legal  purposes." 

On  September  28  the  three  non-Mormon  officers  took  their 
departure,  carrying  with  them  to  Washington  the  disputed  money, 
which  was  turned  over  to  the  proper  officer.1 

All  the  correspondence  concerning  the  failure  of  this  first 
attempt  to  establish  non-Mormon  federal  officers  in  Utah  was 
given  to  Congress  in  a  message  from  President  Fillmore,  dated 
January  9,  1852.  The  returned  officers  made  a  report  which  set 
forth  the  autocratic  attitude  of  the  Mormon  church,  the  open 
practice  of  polygamy,2  and  the  non-enforcement  of  the  laws,  not 
even  murderers  being  punished.      Of  one  of  the  allegations  of 

1  Tullidge,  in  his  "  History  of  Salt  Lake  City,"  says :  "  Under  the  censure  of  the  great 
statesman,  Daniel  Webster,  and  with  ex-Vice  President  Dallas  and  Colonel  Kane  using 
their  potent  influence  against  them,  and  also  Stephen  A.  Douglas,  Brandebury,  Broc- 
chus,  and  Harris  were  forced  to  retire."  As  these  officers  left  the  territory  of  their  own 
accord,  and  contrary  to  Brigham  Young's  urgent  protest,  this  statement  only  furnishes 
another  instance  of  the  Mormon  plan  to  attack  the  reputation  of  any  one  whom  they 
could  not  control.  The  three  officers  were  criticised  by  some  Eastern  newspapers  for 
leaving  their  post  through  fear  of  bodily  injury,  but  Congress  voted  to  pay  their  salaries. 

2  J.  D.  Grant,  following  the  example  of  Colonel  Kane,  had  the  affrontery  to  say  of 
the  charge  of  polygamy,  in  one  of  his  letters  to  the  New  York  Herald:  "  I  pronounce 
it  false.  .  .  .  Suppose  I  should  admit  it  at  once?  Whose  business  is  it?  Does  the  con- 
stitution forbid  it?" 


466  THE   STORY   OF  THE   MORMONS 

murder  set  forth,  —  that  a  man  from  Ithaca,  New  York,  named 
James  Munroe,  was  murdered  on  his  way  to  Salt  Lake  City  by  a 
member  of  the  church,  his  body  brought  to  the  city  and  buried 
without  an  inquest,  the  murderer  walking  the  streets  undisturbed, — 
H.  H.  Bancroft  says,  "  There  is  no  proof  of  this  statement."  1  On 
the  contrary,  Mayor  Grant  in  his  "  Truth  for  the  Mormons  "  ac- 
knowledges it,  and  gives  the  details  of  the  murder,  justifying  it  on 
the  ground  of  provocation,  alleging  that  while  Egan,  the  murderer, 
was  absent  in  California,  Munroe,  "  from  his  youth  up  a  member 
of  the  church,  Egan's  friend  too,  therefore  a  traitor,"  seduced 
Egan's  wife. 

Young,  in  a  statement  to  the  President,  defended  his  acts  and 
the  acts  of  the  territorial  legislature,  and  attacked  the  character 
and  motives  of  the  federal  officers.  The  legislature  soon  after 
petitioned  President  Fillmore  to  fill  the  vacancies  by  appointing 
men  "  who  are,  indeed,  residents  amongst  us." 

1  "  History  of  Utah,"  p.  460,  note. 


CHAPTER  XI 

MORMON   TREATMENT   OF   FEDERAL   OFFICERS 

The  next  federal  officers  for  Utah  appointed  by  the  President 
(in  August,  1852)  were  Lazarus  H.  Reid  of  New  York  to  be  chief 
justice,  Leonidas  Shaver,  associate  justice,  and  B.  G.  Ferris,  sec- 
retary. Neither  of  these  officers  incurred  the  Mormon  wrath. 
Both  of  the  judges  died  while  in  office,  and  the  next  chief  justice 
was  John  F.  Kinney,  who  had  occupied  a  seat  on  the  Iowa  Supreme 
Bench,  with  W.  W.  Drummond  of  Illinois,  and  George  P.  Stiles, 
one  of  Joseph  Smith's  counsel  at  the  time  of  the  prophet's  death,  as 
associates.  A.  W.  Babbitt  received  the  appointment  of  secretary 
of  the  territory.1 

The  territorial  legislature  had  continued  to  meet  from  time  to 
time,  Young  having  a  seat  of  honor  in  front  of  the  Speaker  at  each 
opening  joint  session,  and  presenting  his  message.  The  most  impor- 
tant measure  passed  was  an  election  law  which  practically  gave 
the  church  authorities  control  of  the  ballot.  It  provided  that  each 
voter  must  hand  his  ballot,  folded,  to  the  judge  of  election,  who 
must  deposit  it  after  numbering  it,  and  after  the  clerk  had  recorded 
the  name  and  number.  This,  of  course,  gave  the  church  officers 
knowledge  concerning  the  candidate  for  whom  each  man  voted. 
Its  purpose  needs  no  explanation. 

In  August,  1854,  a  force  of  some  three  hundred  soldiers,  under 
command  of  Lieutenant  Colonel  E.  J.  Steptoe  of  the  United  States 

1  Some  years  later  Babbitt  was  killed.  Mrs.  Waite,  in  "  The  Mormon  Prophet " 
(p.  34)  says :  "  In  the  summer  of  1862  Brigham  was  referring  to  this  affair  in  a  tea-table 
conversation  at  which  Judge  Waite  and  the  writer  of  this  were  present.  After  making 
some  remarks  to  impress  upon  the  minds  of  those  present  the  necessity  of  maintaining 
friendly  relations  between  the  federal  officers  and  the  authorities  of  the  church,  he  used 
language  substantially  as  follows:  '  There  is  no  need  of  any  difficulty,  and  there  need  be 
none  if  the  officers  do  their  duty  and  mind  their  affairs.  If  they  do  not,  if  they  under- 
take to  interfere  with  affairs  that  do  not  concern  them,  I  will  not  be  far  off.  There  was 
Almon  W.  Babbitt.  He  undertook  to  quarrel  with  me,  but  soon  afterward  was  killed  by 
Indians.'" 

467 


468  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

army,  on  their  way  to  the  Pacific  coast,  arrived  in  Salt  Lake  City 
and  passed  the  succeeding  winter  there.  Young's  term  as  governor 
was  about  to  expire,  and  the  appointment  of  his  successor  rested 
with  President  Pierce.  Public  opinion  in  the  East  had  become  more 
outspoken  against  the  Mormons  since  the  resignation  of  the  first 
federal  officers  sent  to  the  territory,  the  "revelation"  concerning 
polygamy  having  been  publicly  avowed  meanwhile,  and  there  was 
an  expressed  feeling  that  a  non-Mormon  should  be  governor.  Ac- 
cordingly, President  Pierce,  in  December,  1854,  offered  the  govern- 
orship to  Lieutenant  Colonel  Steptoe. 

Brigham  Young,  just  before  and  after  this  period,  openly  de- 
clared that  he  would  not  surrender  the  actual  government  of  the 
territory  to  any  man.  In  a  discourse  in  the  Tabernacle,  on  June  19, 
1853,  in  which  he  reviewed  the  events  of  185 1,  he  said,  "We  have 
got  a  territorial  government,  and  I  am  and  will  be  governor,  and  no 
power  can  hinder  it,  until  the  Lord  Almighty  says,  '  Brigham,  you 
need  not  be  governor  any  longer.'  "  2  In  a  defiant  discourse  in  the 
Tabernacle,  on  February  18,  1855,  Young  again  stated  his  position 
on  this  subject :  "For  a  man  to  come  here  [as  governor]  and  infringe 
upon  my  individual  rights  and  privileges,  and  upon  those  of  my 
brethren,  will  never  meet  my  sanction,  and  I  will  scourge  such  a 
one  until  he  leaves.  I  am  after  him."  Defining  his  position  fur- 
ther, and  the  independence  of  his  people,  he  said  :  "  Come  on  with 
your  knives,  your  swords,  and  your  faggots  of  fire,  and  destroy  the 
whole  of  us  rather  than  we  will  forsake  our  religion.  Whether  the 
doctrine  of  plurality  of  wives  is  true  or  false  is  none  of  your  busi- 
ness. We  have  as  good  a  right  to  adopt  tenets  in  our  religion  as 
the  Church  of  England,  or  the  Methodists,  or  the  Baptists,  or  any 
other  denomination  have  to  theirs."  2 

Having  thus  defied  the  federal  appointing  power,  the  nomina- 
tion of  Colonel  Steptoe  as  Young's  successor  might  have  been  ex- 
pected to  cause  an  outbreak ;  but  the  Mormon  leaders  were  always 
diplomatic  —  at  least,  when  Young  did  not  lose  his  temper.  The 
outcome  of  this  appointment  was  its  declination  by  Steptoe,  a  peti- 
tion to  President  Pierce  for  Young's  reappointment  signed  by  Step- 
toe himself  and  all  the  federal  officers  in  the  territory,  and  the 
granting  of  the  request  of  these  petitioners. 

Mrs.  C.  B.  Waite,  wife  of  Associate  Justice  C.  B.  Waite,  one  of 

1  Journal  of Discourses,  Vol.  I,  p.  187.  2  Ibid.,  Vol.  II,  pp.  187-188. 


MORMON   TREATMENT   OF   FEDERAL   OFFICERS  469 

Lincoln's  appointees,  gives  a  circumstantial  account  of  the  manner 
in  which  Colonel  Steptoe  was  influenced  to  decline  the  nomination 
and  sign  the  petition  in  favor  of  Young.1  Two  women,  whose 
beauty  then  attracted  the  attention  of  Salt  Lake  City  society,  were 
a  relative  by  marriage  of  Brigham  Young  and  an  actress  in  the 
church  theatre.  The  federal  army  officers  were  favored  with  a 
good  deal  of  their  society.  When  Steptoe's  appointment  as  gov- 
ernor was  announced,  Young  called  these  women  to  his  assistance. 
In  conformity  with  the  plan  then  suggested,  Young  one  evening 
suddenly  demanded  admission  to  Colonel  Steptoe's  office,  which 
was  granted  after  considerable  delay.  Passing  into  the  back  room, 
he  found  the  two  women  there,  dressed  in  men's  clothes  and  with 
their  faces  concealed  by  their  hats.  He  sent  the  women  home  with 
a  rebuke,  and  then  described  to  Steptoe  the  danger  he  was  in  if  the 
women's  friends  learned  of  the  incident,  and  the  disgrace  which 
would  follow  its  exposure.  Steptoe's  declination  of  the  nomina- 
tion and  his  recommendation  of  Young  soon  followed. 

President  Pierce's  selection  of  judicial  officers  for  Utah  was  not 
made  with  proper  care,  nor  with  due  regard  to  the  dignity  of  the 
places  to  be  filled.  Chief  Justice  Kinney  took  with  him  to  Utah  a 
large  stock  of  goods  which  he  sold  at  retail  after  his  arrival  there, 
and  he  also  kept  a  boarding-house  in  Salt  Lake  City.  With  his 
"trade"  dependent  on  Mormon  customers,  he  had  every  object  in 
cultivating  their  popularity.  Known  as  a  "  Jack-Mormon  "  in  Iowa, 
Mrs.  Waite  declared  that  his  uniform  course,  to  the  time  about 
which  she  wrote,  had  been  "  to  aid  and  abet  Brigham  Young  in  his 
ambitious  schemes,"  and  that  he  was  then  "  an  open  apologist  and 
advocate  of  polygamy."  Judge  Drummond's  course  in  Utah  was 
in  many  respects  scandalous.  A  former  member  of  the  bench  in 
Illinois  writes  to  me  :  "  I  remember  that  when  Drummond's  appoint- 
ment was  announced  there  was  considerable  comment  as  to  his  lack 
of  fitness  for  the  place,  and,  after  the  troubles  between  him  and  the 
Mormon  leaders  got  aired  through  the  press,  members  of  the  bar 
from  his  part  of  the  state  said  they  did  not  blame  the  Mormons  — 
that  it  was  an  imposition  upon  them  to  have  sent  him  out  there  as 
a  judge.  I  never  heard  his  moral  character  discussed."  If  the  Mor- 
mon leaders  had  shown  any  respect  for  the  government  at  Wash- 
ington, or  for  the  reputable  men  appointed  to  territorial  offices, 

1  "The  Mormon  Prophet,"  p.  36,  confirmed  by  Beadle's  "Life  in  Utah,"  p.  171. 


470 


THE   STORY   OF  THE   MORMONS 


more  attention  might  be  paid  to  their  hostility  manifested  to  certain 
individuals. 

A  few  of  the  leading  questions  at  issue  under  the  new  territorial 
officers  will  illustrate  the  nature  of  the  government  with  which  they 
had  to  deal.  The  territorial  legislature  had  passed  acts  defining 
the  powers  and  duties  of  the  territorial  courts.  These  acts  pro- 
vided that  the  district  courts  should  have  original  jurisdiction,  both 
civil  and  criminal,  wherever  not  otherwise  provided  by  law.  Chap- 
ter 64  (approved  January  14,  1864)  provided  as  follows  :  "  All  ques- 
tions of  law,  the  meaning  of  writings  other  than  law,  and  the 
admissibility  of  testimony  shall  be  decided  by  the  court ;  and  no 
laws  or  parts  of  laws  shall  be  read,  argued,  cited,  or  adopted  in  any 
courts,  during  any  trial,  except  those  enacted  by  the  governor  and 
legislative  assembly  of  this  territory,  and  those  passed  by  the  Con- 
gress of  the  United  States,  when  applicable;  and  no  report,  deci- 
sion, or  doings  of  any  court  shall  be  read,  argued,  cited,  or  adopted 
as  precedent  in  any  other  trial."  This  obliterated  at  a  stroke  the 
whole  body  of  the  English  common  law.  Another  act  provided 
that,  by  consent  of  the  court  and  the  parties,  any  person  could  be 
selected  to  act  as  judge  in  a  particular  case.  As  the  district  court 
judges  were  federal  appointees,  a  judge  of  probate  was  provided 
for  each  county,  to  be  elected  by  joint  ballot  of  the  legislature. 
These  probate  courts,  besides  the  authority  legitimately  belonging 
to  such  tribunals,  were  given  "power  to  exercise  original  jurisdic- 
tion, both  civil  and  criminal,  as  well  in  chancery  as  at  common 
law."  Thus  there  were  in  the  territory  two  kinds  of  courts,  to  one 
of  which  alone  a  non-Mormon  could  look  for  justice,  and  to  the  other 
of  which  every  Mormon  would  appeal  when  he  was  not  prevented. 

The  act  of  Congress  organizing  the  territory  provided  for  the 
appointment  of  a  marshal,  approved  by  the  President ;  the  terri- 
torial legislature  on  March  3,  1852,  provided  for  another  marshal 
to  be  elected  by  joint  ballot,  and  for  an  attorney  general.  A.  non- 
Mormon  had  succeeded  the  original  Mormon  who  was  appointed 
as  federal  marshal,  and  he  took  the  ground  that  he  should  have 
charge  of  all  business  pertaining  to  the  marshal's  office  in  the 
United  States  courts.  Judge  Stiles  having  issued  writs  to  the 
federal  marshal,  the  latter  was  not  able  to  serve  them,  and 
the  demand  was  openly  made  that  only  territorial  law  should 
be  enforced  in  Utah.      When  the  question  of   jurisdiction  came 


MORMON   TREATMENT   OF   FEDERAL   OFFICERS  471 

before  the  judge,  three  Mormon  lawyers  appeared  in  behalf  of  the 
Mormon  claim,  and  one  of  them,  James  Ferguson,  openly  told  the 
judge  that,  if  he  decided  against  him,  they  "would  take  him  from 

the  bench  d d  quick."     Judge  Stiles  adjourned  his  court,  and 

applied  to  Governor  Young  for  assistance ;  but  got  only  the  reply 
that  "  the  boys  had  got  their  spunk  up,  and  he  would  not  inter- 
fere," and  that,  if  Judge  Stiles  could  not  enforce  the  United 
States  laws,  the  sooner  he  adjourned  court  the  better.1  All  the 
records  and  papers  of  the  United  States  court  were  kept  in  Judge 
Stiles's  office.  In  his  absence,  Ferguson  led  a  crowd  to  the  office, 
seized  and  deposited  in  a  safe  belonging  to  Young  the  court  papers, 
and,  piling  up  the  personal  books  and  papers  of  the  judge  in  an 
outhouse,  set  fire  to  them.  The  judge,  supposing  that  the  court 
papers  were  included  in  the  bonfire,  innocently  made  that  state- 
ment in  an    affidavit   submitted  on  his   return  to  Washington  in 

1857. 

Judge  Drummond,  reversing  the  policy  of  Chief  Justice  Kinney 
and  Judge  Shaver,  announced,  before  the  opening  of  the  first  ses- 
sion of  his  court,  that  he  should  ignore  all  proceedings  of  the  terri- 
torial probate  courts  except  such  as  pertained  to  legitimate 
probate  business.  This  position  was  at  once  recognized  as  a 
challenge  of  the  entire  Mormon  judicial  system,2  and  steps  were 
promptly  taken  to  overthrow  it.  There  are  somewhat  conflicting 
accounts  of  the  method  adopted.  Mrs.  Waite,  in  her  "  Mormon 
Prophet,"  Hickman,  in  his  confessions,  and  Remy,  in  his  "Jour- 
ney," have  all  described  it  with  variations.  All  agree  that  a  quarrel 
was  brought  about  between  the  judge  and  a  Jew,  which  led  to  the 
arrest  of  both  of  them.  "  During  the  prosecution  of  the  case," 
says  Mrs.  Waite,  "  the  judge  gave  some  sort  of  a  stipulation  that 
he  would  not  interfere  any  further  with  the  probate  courts." 

Judge  Stiles  left  the  territory  in  the  spring  of  1857,  and  gave 
the  government  an  account  of  his  treatment  in  the  form  of  an  affi- 
davit when  he  reached  Washington.    Judge  Drummond  held  court 

1  This  account  is  given  in  Mrs.  Waite's  "The  Mormon  Prophet."  Tullidge  omits 
the  incident  in  his  "  History  of  Salt  Lake  City." 

2  A  member  of  the  legislature  wrote  to  his  brother  in  England,  of  Drummond : 
"  He  has  brass  to  declare  in  open  court  that  the  Utah  laws  are  founded  in  ignorance, 
and  has  attempted  to  set  some  of  the  most  important  ones  aside,  .  .  .  and  he  will  be 
able  to  appreciate  the  merits  of  a  returned  compliment  some  day."  —  Tullidge,  "  His- 
tory of  Salt  Lake  City,"  p.  412. 


472  THE   STORY   OF  THE   MORMONS 

a  short  time  for  Judge  Stiles  in  Carson  County  (now  Nevada) *  in 
the  spring  of  1857,  and  then  returned  to  the  East  by  way  of  Cali- 
fornia, not  concealing  his  opinion  of  Mormon  rule  on  the  way,  and 
giving  the  government  a  statement  of  the  case  in  a  letter  resigning 
his  judgeship. 

After  the  departure  of  the  non-Mormon  federal  judges  from 
Utah,  the  only  non-Mormon  officers  left  there  were  those  belong- 
ing to  the  office  of  the  surveyor  general,  and  two  Indian  agents. 
Toward  these  officers  the  Mormons  were  as  hostile  as  they  had 
been  toward  the  judges,  and  the  latest  information  that  the  gov- 
ernment received  about  the  disposition  and  intentions  of  the  Mor- 
mons came  from  them. 

The  Mormon  view  of  their  title  to  the  land  in  Salt  Lake  Valley 
appeared  in  Young's  declaration  on  his  first  Sunday  there,  that  it 
was  theirs  and  would  be  divided  by  the  officers  of  the  church.2 
Tullidge,  explaining  this  view  in  his  history  published  in  1886, 
says  that  this  was  simply  following  out  the  social  plan  of  a  Zion 
which  Smith  attempted  in  Ohio,  Missouri,  and  Illinois,  under 
"  revelation."  He  explains :  "  According  to  the  primal  law  of 
colonization,  recognized  in  all  ages,  it  was  their  land  if  they  could 
hold  and  possess  it.  They  could  have  done  this  so  far  as  the 
Mexican  government  was  concerned,  which  government  probably 
never  would  even  have  made  the  first  step  to  overthrow  the  super- 
structure of  these  Mormon  society  builders.     At  that  date,  before 

1  The  settlement  of  what  is  now  Nevada  was  begun  by  both  Mormons  and  non- 
Mormons  in  1854,  and,  the  latter  being  in  the  majority,  the  Utah  legislature  organized 
the  entire  western  part  of  the  territory  as  one  county,  called  Carson,  and  Governor 
Young  appointed  Orson  Hyde  its  probate  judge.  Many  persons  coming  in  after  the 
settlement  of  California,  as  miners,  farmers,  or  stock-raisers,  the  Mormons  saw  their 
majority  in  danger,  and  ordered  the  non-Mormons  to  leave.  Both  sides  took  up  arms, 
and  they  camped  in  sight  of  each  other  for  two  weeks.  The  Mormons,  learning  that 
their  opponents  were  to  receive  reinforcements  from  California,  agreed  on  equal  rights 
for  all  in  that  part  of  the  territory;  but  when  the  legislature  learned  of  this,  it  repealed 
the  county  act,  recalled  the  judge,  and  left  the  district  without  any  legal  protection 
whatever.  Thus  matters  remained  until  late  in  1858,  when  a  probate  judge  was  quietly 
appointed  for  Carson  Valley.  After  this  an  election  was  held,  but  although  the  non- 
Mormons  won  at  the  polls,  the  officers  elected  refused  to  qualify  and  enforce  Mormon 
statutes.  —  Letter  of  Delegate-elect  J.  M.  Crane  of  Nevada,  "The  Mormon  Prophet," 

PP-  41-45- 

2  "  They  will  not,  however,  without  protest,  buy  the  land,  and  hope  that  grants  will 
be  made  to  actual  settlers  or  the  state,  sufficient  to  cover  their  improvements.  If  not, 
the  state  will  be  obliged  to  buy,  and  then  confirm  the  titles  already  given."  —  Gunni- 
son, "  The  Mormons,"  1852,  p.  414. 


MORMON   TREATMENT   OF   FEDERAL   OFFICERS  473 

this  territory  was  ceded  to  the  United  States,  Brigham  Young,  as 
the  master  builder  of  the  colonies  which  were  soon  to  spread 
throughout  these  valleys,  could  with  absolute  propriety  give  the 
above  utterances  on  the  land  question."  1 

When  the  act  organizing  the  territory  was  passed,  very  little  of 
the  Indian  title  to  the  land  had  been  extinguished,  and  the  Indians 
made  bitter  complaints  of  the  seizure  of  their  homes  and  hunting 
grounds,  and  the  establishment  of  private  rights  to  canons  and 
ferries,  by  the  people  who  professed  so  great  a  regard  for  the 
"  Lamanites."  Congress,  in  February,  1855,  created  the  office  of 
surveyor  general  of  Utah  and  defined  his  duties.  The  presence 
of  this  officer  was  resented  at  once,  and  as  soon  as  Surveyor  Gen- 
eral David  H.  Burr  arrived  in  Salt  Lake  City  the  church  directed 
all  its  members  to  convey  their  lands  to  Young  as  trustee  in  trust 

for  the  church,  "  in  consideration  of  the  good  will  which have 

to  the  church  of  Jesus  Christ  of  Latter-Day  Saints."  Explaining 
this  order  in  a  discourse  in  the  Tabernacle  on  March  1,  1857, 
H.  C.  Kimball  said :  "  I  do  not  compel  you  to  do  it ;  the  trustee  in 
trust  does  not ;  God  does  not.  But  He  says  that  if  you  will  do 
this  and  the  other  things  which  He  has  counselled  for  our  good, 
do  so  and  prove  Him.  ...  If  you  trifle  with  me  when  I  tell  you 
the  truth,  you  will  trifle  with  Brother  Brigham,  and  if  you  trifle 
with  him  you  will  also  trifle  with  angels  and  with  God,  and  thus 
you  will  trifle  yourselves  down  to  hell."2 

The  Mormon  policy  toward  the  surveyors  soon  took  practical 
shape.  On  August  30,  1856,  Burr  reported  a  nearly  fatal  assault 
on  one  of  his  deputies  by  three  Danites.  Deputy  Surveyor  Craig 
reported  efforts  of  the  Mormons  to  stir  up  the  Indians  against  the 
surveyors,  and  quoted  a  suggestion  of  the  Deseret  News  that  the 
surveyors  be  prosecuted  in  the  territorial  court  for  trespass.  In 
February,  1857,  Burr  reported  a  visit  he  had  had  from  the  clerk 
of  the  Supreme  Court,  the  acting  district  attorney,  and  the  terri- 
torial marshal,  who  told  him  plainly  that  the  country  was  theirs. 

1  Captain  Gunnison,  who  as  lieutenant  accompanied  Stansbury's  surveying  party 
and  printed  a  book  giving  his  personal  observations,  was  murdered  in  1853  while  survey- 
ing a  railroad  route  at  a  camp  on  Sevier  River.  His  party  were  surprised  by  a  band  of 
Pah  Utes  while  at  breakfast,  and  nine  of  them  were  killed.  The  charge  was  often  made 
that  this  massacre  was  inspired  by  Mormons,  but  it  has  not  been  supported  by  direct 
evidence. 

2  Jotcrnal  of Discourses,  Vol.  IV,  pp.  249,  252. 


474 


THE   STORY   OF  THE   MORMONS 


They  showed  him  a  copy  of  a  report  that  he  had  made  to  Wash- 
ington, charging  Young  with  extensive  depredations,  warned  him 
that  he  could  not  write  to  Washington  without  their  knowledge, 
and  ordered  that  such  letter  writing  should  stop.  "  The  fact  is," 
Burr  added,  "these  people  repudiate  the  authority  of  the  United 
States  in  this  country,  and  are  in  open  rebellion  against  the  gen- 
eral government.  ...  So  strong  have  been  my  apprehensions  of 
danger  to  the  surveyors  that  I  scarcely  deemed  it  prudent  to  send 
any  out.  .  .  .  We  are  by  no  means  sure  that  we  will  be  per- 
mitted to  leave,  for  it  is  boldly  asserted  we  would  not  get  away 
alive."  1     He  did  escape  early  in  the  spring. 

The  reports  of  the  Indian  agents  to  the  commissioner  at  Washing- 
ton at  this  time  were  of  the  same  character.  Mormon  trespasses 
on  Indian  land  had  caused  more  than  one  conflict  with  the  savages, 
but,  when  there  was  a  prospect  of  hostilities  with  the  government, 
the  Mormons  took  steps  to  secure  Indian  aid.  In  May,  1855, 
Indian  Agent  Hurt  called  the  attention  of  the  commissioner  at 
Washington  to  the  fact  that  the  Mormons  at  their  recent  Confer- 
ence had  appointed  a  large  number  of  missionaries  to  preach 
among  the  "  Lamanites  "  ;  that  these  missionaries  were  "  a  class 
of  lawless  young  men,"  and,  as  their  influence  was  likely  to  be  in 
favor  of  hostilities  with  the  whites,  he  suggested  that  all  Indian 
officers  receive  warning  on  the  subject.  Hurt  was  added  to  the 
list  of  fugitive  federal  officers  from  Utah,  deeming  it  necessary  to 
flee  when  news  came  of  the  approach  of  the  troops  in  the  fall  of 
1857.  His  escape  was  quite  dramatic,  some  of  his  Indian  friends 
assisting  him.  They  reached  General  Johnston's  camp  about 
the  middle  of  October,  after  suffering  greatly  from  hunger  and 
cold. 

The  Mormon  leaders  could  scarcely  fail  to  realize  that  a  point 
must  be  reached  when  the  federal  government  would  assert  its 
authority  in  Utah  territory,  but  they  deemed  a  conflict  with  the 
government  of  less  serious  moment  than  a  surrender  which  would 
curtail  their  own  civil  and  criminal  jurisdiction,  and  bring  their  doc- 
trine of  polygamy  within  reach  of  the  law.  A  specimen  of  the 
unbridled  utterances  of  these  leaders  in  those  days  will  be  found 
in  a  discourse  by  Mayor  Grant  in  the  Tabernacle,  on  March  2, 
1856:  — 

1  For  text  of  reports,  see  House  Ex.  Doc.  No.  71,  1st  Session,  35th  Congress. 


MORMON   TREATMENT   OF   FEDERAL   OFFICERS  475 

"  Who  is  afraid  to  die  ?  None  but  the  wicked.  If  they  want  to  send  troops 
here,  let  them  come  to  those  who  have  imported  filth  and  whores,  though  we  can 
attend  to  that  class  without  so  much  expense  to  the  Government.  They  will 
threaten  us  with  United  States  troops  !  Why,  your  impudence  and  ignorance 
would  bring  a  blush  to  the  cheek  of  the  veriest  camp-follower  among  them.  We 
ask  no  odds  of  you,  you  rotten  carcasses,  and  I  am  not  going  to  bow  one  hair's 
breadth  to  your  influence.  I  would  rather  be  cut  into  inch  pieces  than  succumb 
one  particle  to  such  filthiness.  ...  If  we  were  to  establish  a  whorehouse  on  every 
corner  of  our  streets,  as  in  nearly  all  other  cities  outside  of  Utah,  either  by  law 
or  otherwise,  we  should  doubtless  then  be  considered  good  fellows."  1 

Two  weeks  later  Brigham  Young,  in  a  sermon  in  the  same  place, 
said,  "  I  said  then,  and  I  shall  always  say,  that  I  shall  be  gov- 
ernor as  long  as  the  Lord  Almighty  wishes  me  to  govern  this 
people.2 

In  January,  1853,  Orson  Pratt,  as  Mormon  representative,  began 
the  publication  in  Washington,  D.C.,  of  a  monthly  periodical  called 
The  Seer,  in  which  he  defended  polygamy,  explained  the  Mormon 
creed,  and  set  forth  the  attitude  of  the  Mormons  toward  the  United 
States  government.  The  latter  subject  occupied  a  large  part  of 
the  issue  of  January,  1854,  in  the  shape  of  questions  and  answers. 
The  following  will  give  an  illustration  of  their  tone  :  — 

«  Q,  —  in  what  manner  have  the  people  of  the  United  States  treated  the  di- 
vine message  contained  in  the  Book  of  Mormon  ? 

"  A.  —  They  have  closed  their  eyes,  their  ears,  their  hearts  and  their  doors 
against  it.  They  have  scorned,  rejected  and  hated  the  servants  of  God  who  were 
sent  to  bear  testimony  of  it. 

u  g. —  In  what  manner  has  the  United  States  treated  the  Saints  who  have 
believed  in  this  divine  message  ? 

«  A.  —  They  have  proceeded  to  the  most  savage  and  outrageous  persecu- 
tions ;  .  .  .  dragged  little  children  from  their  hiding-places,  and,  placing  the  muz- 
zles of  their  guns  to  their  heads,  have  blown  out  their  brains,  with  the  most  horrid 
oaths  and  imprecations.  They  have  taken  the  fair  daughters  of  American  citizens, 
bound  them  on  benches  used  for  public  worship,  and  there,  in  great  numbers, 
ravished  them  until  death  came  to  their  relief." 

Further  answers  were  in  the  shape  of  an  argument  that  the 
federal  government  was  responsible  for  the  losses  of  the  Saints  in 
Missouri  and  Illinois. 

1  Journal  of  Discourses,  Vol.  Ill,  pp.  234-235.  2  Ibid.,  p.  258. 


CHAPTER   XII 
THE  MORMON  "WAR" 

The  government  at  Washington  and  the  people  of  the  Eastern 
states  knew  a  good  deal  more  about  Mormonism  in  1856  than  they 
did  when  Fillmore  gave  the  appointment  of  governor  to  Young  in 
1850.  The  return  of  one  federal  officer  after  another  from  Utah 
with  a  report  that  his  office  was  untenable,  even  if  his  life  was 
not  in  danger,  the  practical  nullification  of  federal  law,  and 
the  light  that  was  beginning  to  be  shed  on  Mormon  social  life 
by  correspondents  of  Eastern  newspapers  had  aroused  enough 
public  interest  in  the  matter  to  lead  the  politicians  to  deem  it 
worthy  of  their  attention.  Accordingly,  the  Republican  National 
Convention,  in  June,  1856,  inserted  in  its  platform  a  plank  declar- 
ing that  the  constitution  gave  Congress  sovereign  power  over  the 
territories,  and  that  "  it  is  both  the  right  and  the  duty  of  Congress 
1/  to  prohibit  in  the  territories  those  twin  relics  of  barbarism  —  polyg- 
amy and  slavery." 

A  still  more  striking  proof  of  the  growing  political  importance 
of  the  Mormon  question  was  afforded  by  the  attention  paid  to  it  by 
Stephen  A.  Douglas  in  a  speech  in  Springfield,  Illinois,  on  June  12, 
1856,  when  he  was  hoping  to  secure  the  Democratic  nomination 
for  President.  This  former  friend  of  the  Mormons,  their  spokes- 
man in  the  Senate,  now  declared  that  reports  from  the  territory 
seemed  to  justify  the  belief  that  nine-tenths  of  its  inhabitants  were 
aliens ;  that  all  were  bound  by  horrid  oaths  and  penalties  to  recog- 
nize and  maintain  the  authority  of  Brigham  Young ;  and  that  the 
Mormon  government  was  forming  alliances  with  the  Indians,  and 
organizing  Danite  bands  to  rob  and  murder  American  citizens. 
"  Under  this  view  of  the  subject,"  said  he,  "  I  think  it  is  the  duty 
of  the  President,  as  I  have  no  doubt  it  is  his  fixed  purpose,  to  re- 
move Brigham  Young  and  all  his  followers  from  office,  and  to  fill 
their  places  with  bold,  able,  and  true  men  ;  and  to  cause  a  thorough 

476 


THE   MORMON  "WAR"  477 

and  searching  investigation  into  all  the  crimes  and  enormities 
which  are  alleged  to  be  perpetrated  daily  in  that  territory  under 
the  direction  of  Brigham  Young  and  his  confederates ;  and  to  use 
all  the  military  force  necessary  to  protect  the  officers  in  discharge 
of  their  duties  and  to  enforce  the  laws  of  the  land.  When  the 
authentic  evidence  shall  arrive,  if  it  shall  establish  the  facts  which 
are  believed  to  exist,  it  will  become  the  duty  of  Congress  to  apply 
the  knife,  and  cut  out  this  loathsome,  disgusting  ulcer."  1 

This,  of  course,  caused  the  Mormons  to  pour  out  on  Judge 
Douglas  the  vials  of  their  wrath,  and,  when  he  failed  to  secure  the 
presidential  nomination,  they  found  in  his  defeat  the  verification  of 
one  of  Smith's  prophecies. 

The  Mormons,  on  their  part,  had  never  ceased  their  demands 
for  statehood,  and  another  of  their  efforts  had  been  made  in  the 
preceding  spring,  when  a  new  constitution  of  the  State  of  Deseret 
was  adopted  by  a  convention  over  which  the  notorious  Jedediah 
M.  Grant  presided,  and  sent  to  Washington  with  a  memorial  plead- 
ing for  admission  to  the  Union,  "  that  another  star,  shedding  mild 
radiance  from  the  tops  of  the  mountains,  midway  between  the  bor- 
ders of  the  Eastern  and  Western  civilization,  may  add  its  effulgence 
to  that  bright  light  now  so  broadly  illumining  the  governmental 
pathway  of  nations  " ;  and  declaring  that  "  the  loyalty  of  Utah  has 
been  variously  and  most  thoroughly  tested."  Congress  treated 
this  application  with  practical  contempt,  the  Senate  laying  the 
memorial  on  the  table,  and  the  chairman  of  the  House  Committee 
on  Territories,  Galusha  A.  Grow,  refusing  to  present  the  constitu- 
tion to  the  House. 

Alarmed  at  the  manifestations  of  public  feeling  in  the  East,  and 
the  demand  that  President  Buchanan  should  do  something  to  vin- 
dicate at  least  the  dignity  of  the  government,  the  Mormon  leaders 
and  press  renewed  their  attacks  on  the  character  of  all  the  federal 
officers  who  had  criticised  them,  and  the  Deseret  News  urged  the 
President  to  send  to  Utah  "  one  or  more  civilians  on  a  short  visit 
to  look  about  them  and  see  what  they  can  see,  and  return  and 
report."  The  value  of  observations  by  such  "short  visitors"  on 
such  occasions  need  not  be  discussed. 

President  Buchanan,  instead  of  following  any  Mormon  advice, 
soon  after  his  inauguration  directed  the  organization  of  a  body  of 

1  Text  of  the  speech  in  New  York  Times  of  June  23,  1856. 


478  THE   STORY   OF  THE   MORMONS 

troops  to  march  to  Utah  to  uphold  the  federal  authorities,  and  in 
July,  after  several  persons  had  declined  the  office,  appointed  as 
governor  of  Utah  Alfred  Cumming  of  Georgia.  The  appointee 
was  a  brother  of  Colonel  William  Cumming,  who  won  renown  as 
a  soldier  in  the  War  of  1812,  who  was  a  Union  party  leader  in  the 
nullification  contest  in  Jackson's  time,  and  who  was  a  participant 
in  a  duel  with  G.  McDufne  that  occupied  a  good  deal  of  attention. 
Alfred  Cumming  had  filled  no  more  important  positions  than  those 
of  mayor  of  Augusta,  Georgia,  sutler  in  the  Mexican  War,  and 
superintendent  of  Indian  affairs  on  the  upper  Missouri.  A  much 
more  commendable  appointment  made  at  the  same  time  was  that 
of  D.  R.  Eckles,  a  Kentuckian  by  birth,  but  then  a  resident  of 
Indiana,  to  be  chief  justice  of  the  territory.  John  Cradlebaugh 
and  C.  E.  Sinclair  were  appointed  associate  justices,  with  John 
Hartnett  as  secretary,  and  Peter  K.  Dotson  as  marshal.  The  new 
governor  gave  the  first  illustration  of  his  conception  of  his  duties 
by  remaining  in  the  East,  while  the  troops  were  moving,  asking  for 
an  increase  of  his  salary,  a  secret  service  fund,  and  for  transporta- 
tion to  Utah.  Only  the  last  of  these  requests  was  complied  with. 
President  Buchanan's  position  as  regards  Utah  at  this  time  was 
thus  stated  in  his  first  annual  message  to  Congress  (December  8, 
1857):- 

"  The  people  of  Utah  almost  exclusively  belong  to  this  [Mormon]  church, 
and,  believing  with  a  fanatical  spirit  that  he  [Young]  is  Governor  of  the  Terri- 
tory by  divine  appointment,  they  obey  his  commands  as  if  these  were  direct  revela- 
tions from  heaven.  If,  therefore,  he  chooses  that  his  government  shall  come  into 
collision  with  the  government  of  the  United  States,  the  members  of  the  Mormon 
church  will  yield  implicit  obedience  to  his  will.  Unfortunately,  existing  facts 
leave  but  little  doubt  that  such  is  his  determination.  Without  entering  upon  a 
minute  history  of  occurrences,  it  is  sufficient  to  say  that  all  the  officers  of  the 
United  States,  judicial  and  executive,  with  the  single  exception  of  two  Indian 
agents,  have. found  it  necessary  for  their  own  safety  to  withdraw  from  the  Terri- 
tory, and  there  no  longer  remained  any  government  in  Utah  but  the  despotism  of 
Brigham  Young.  This  being  the  condition  of  affairs  in  the  Territory,  I  could  not 
mistake  the  path  of  duty.  As  chief  executive  magistrate,  I  was  bound  to  restore 
the  supremacy  of  the  constitution  and  laws  within  its  limits.  In  order  to  effect 
this  purpose,  I  appointed  a  new  governor  and  other  federal  officers  for  Utah,  and 
sent  with  them  a  military  force  for  their  protection,  and  to  aid  as  a  posse  comi- 
tatus  in  case  of  need  in  the  execution  of  the  laws. 

"With  the  religious  opinions  of  the  Mormons,  as  long  as  they  remained  mere 
opinions,  however  deplorable  in  themselves  and  revolting  to  the  moral  and  religious 
sentiments  of  all  Christendom,  I  have  no  right  to  interfere.     Actions  alone,  when 


THE   MORMON   "WAR"  479 

in  violation  of  the  constitution  and  laws  of  the  United  States,  become  the  legiti- 
mate subjects  for  the  jurisdiction  of  the  civil  magistrate.  My  instructions  to  Gov- 
ernor Cumming  have,  therefore,  been  framed  in  strict  accordance  with  these 
principles." 

This  statement  of  the  situation  of  affairs  in  Utah,  and  of  the 
duty  of  the  President  in  the  circumstances,  did  not  admit  of  criti- 
cism. But  the  country  at  that  time  was  in  a  state  of  intense  excite- 
ment over  the  slavery  question,  with  the  situation  in  Kansas  the 
centre  of  attention ;  and  it  was  charged  that  Buchanan  put  for- 
ward the  Mormon  issue  as  a  part  of  his  scheme  to  "  gag  the  North  " 
and  force  some  question  besides  slavery  to  the  front ;  and  that 
Secretary  of  War  Floyd  eagerly  seized  the  opportunity  to  remove 
"  the  flower  of  the  American  army  "  and  a  vast  amount  of  muni- 
tion and  supplies  to  a  distant  place,  remote  from  Eastern  con- 
nections. The  principal  newspapers  in  this  country  were  intensely 
partisan  in  those  days,  and  party  organs  like  the  New  York  Trib- 
une could  be  counted  on  to  criticise  any  important  step  taken  by 
the  Democratic  President.  Such  Mormon  agents  as  Colonel  Kane 
and  Dr.  Bernhisel,  the  Utah  Delegate  to  Congress,  were  doing 
active  work  in  New  York  and  Washington,  and  some  of  it  with 
effect.  Horace  Greeley,  in  his  "Overland  Journey,"  describing 
his  call  on  Brigham  Young  a  few  years  later,  says  that  he  was 
introduced  by  "  my  friend  Dr.  Bernhisel."  The  "  Tribune  Alma- 
nac "  for  1859,  m  an  article  on  the  Utah  troubles,  quoted  as  "too 
true"  Young's  declaration  that  "for  the  last  twenty-five  years  we 
have  trusted  officials  of  the  government,  from  constables  and 
justices  to  judges,  governors,  and  presidents,  only  to  be  scorned, 
held  in  derision,  insulted  and  betrayed."  x  Ulterior  motives  aside, 
no  President   ever    had  a   clearer   duty   than    had    Buchanan   to 

1  Greeley's  leaning  to  the  Mormon  side  was  quite  persistent,  leading  him  to  support 
Governor  Cumming  a  little  later  against  the  federal  judges.  The  Mormons  never  for- 
got this.  A  Washington  letter  of  April  24,  1874,  to  the  New  York  Times  said:  "  When 
Mr.  Greeley  was  nominated  for  President  the  Mormons  heartily  hoped  for  his  election. 
The  church  organs  and  the  papers  taken  in  the  territory  were  all  hostile  to  the  admin- 
istration, and  their  clamor  deceived  for  a  time  people  far  more  enlightened  than  the  fol- 
lowers of  the  modern  Mohammed.  It  is  said  that,  while  the  canvass  was  pending,  certain 
representatives  of  the  Liberal-Democratic  alliance  bargained  with  Brigham  Young,  and 
that  he  contributed  a  very  large  sum  of  money  to  the  treasury  of  the  Greeley  fund,  and 
that,  in  consideration  of  this  contribution,  he  received  assurances  that,  if  he  should  send 
a  polygamist  to  Congress,  no  opposition  would  be  made  by  the  supporters  of  the  admin- 
istration that  was  to  be,  to  his  admission  to  the  House.  Brigham  therefore  sent  Cannon 
instead  of  returning  Hooper." 


480  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

maintain  the  federal  authority  in  Utah,  and  to  secure  to  all  resi- 
dents in  and  travellers  through  that  territory  the  rights  of  life 
and  property.  The  just  ground  for  criticising  him  is,  not  that 
he  attempted  to  do  this,  but  that  he  faltered  by  the  way.1 

Early  in  1856  arrangements  were  entered  into  with  H.  C.  Kim- 
ball for  a  contract  to  carry  the  mail  between  Independence,  Mis- 
souri, and  Salt  Lake  City.  Young  saw  in  this  the  nucleus  of  a  big 
company  that  would  maintain  a  daily  express  and  mail  service  to 
and  from  the  Mormon  centre,  and  he  at  once  organized  the  Brig- 
ham  Young  Express  Carrying  Company,  and  had  it  commended  to 
the  people  from  the  pulpit.  But  recent  disclosures  of  Mormon 
methods  and  purposes  had  naturally  caused  the  government  to 
question  the  propriety  of  confiding  the  Utah  and  transcontinental 
mails  to  Mormon  hands,  and  on  June  10,  1857,  Kimball  was  noti- 
fied that  the  government  would  not  execute  the  contract  with  him, 
"  the  unsettled  state  of  things  at  Salt  Lake  City  rendering  the 
mails  unsafe  under  present  circumstances."  Mormon  writers  make 
much  of  the  failure  to  execute  this  mail  contract  as  an  exciting 
cause  of  the  "war."  Tullidge  attributes  the  action  of  the  admin- 
istration to  three  documents  —  a  letter  from  Mail  Contractor  W. 
M.  F.  Magraw  to  the  President,  describing  the  situation  in  Utah, 
Judge  Drummond's  letter  of  resignation,  and  a  letter  from  Indian 
Agent  T.  S.  Twiss,  dated  July  13,  1856,  informing  the  government 
that  a  large  Mormon  colony  had  taken  possession  of  Deer  Creek 
Valley,  only  one  hundred  miles  west  of  Fort  Laramie,  driving  out 
a  settlement  of  Sioux  whom  the  agent  had  induced  to  plant  corn 
there,  and  charging  that  the  Mormon  occupation  was  made  with  a 
view  to  the  occupancy  of  the  country,  and  "  under  cover  of  a  con- 
tract of  the  Mormon  church  to  carry  the  mails."  2  Tullidge's  state- 
ment could  be  made  with  hope  of  its  acceptance  only  to  persons 
who  either  lacked  the  opportunity  or  inclination  to  ascertain  the 
actual  situation  in  Utah  and  the  President's  sources  of  information. 

As  to  the  mails,  no  autocratic  government  like  that  of  Brigham 
Young  would  neglect  to  make  what  use  it  pleased  of  them  in  its 

1  It  is  curious  to  notice  that  the  Utah  troubles  are  entirely  ignored  in  the  "  Life  of 
James  Buchanan"  (1883)  by  George Ticknor  Curtis,  who  was  the  counsel  for  the  Mor- 
mons in  the  argument  concerning  polygamy  before  the  United  States  Supreme  Court  in 
1886. 

2  All  these  may  be  found  in  House  Ex.  Doc.  No.  71,  1st  Session,  35th  Congress. 


THE   MORMON   "WAR"  48 1 

struggle  with  the  authorities  at  Washington.  As  early  as  Novem- 
ber, 185 1,  Indian  Agent  Holman  wrote  to  the  Indian  commissioner 
at  Washington  from  Salt  Lake  City :  "  The  Gentiles,  as  we  are 
called  who  do  not  belong  to  the  Mormon  church,  have  no  confi- 
dence in  the  management  of  the  post-office  here.  It  is  believed 
by  many  that  there  is  an  examination  of  all  letters  coming  and  go- 
ing, in  order  that  they  may  ascertain  what  is  said  of  them  and  by 
whom  it  is  said.  This  opinion  is  so  strong  that  all  communications 
touching  their  character  or  conduct  are  either  sent  to  Bridger  or 
Laramie,  there  to  be  mailed.  I  send  this  communication  through 
a  friend  to  Laramie,  to  be  there  mailed  for  the  States." 

Testimony  on  this  point  four  years  later,  from  an  independent 
source,  is  found  in  a  Salt  Lake  City  letter,  of  November  3,  1855,  to 
the  New  York  Herald.  The  writer  said  :  "  From  September  5,  to 
the  27th  instant  the  people  of  this  territory  had  not  received  any 
news  from  the  States  except  such  as  was  contained  in  a  few  broken 
files  of  California  papers.  .  .  .  Letters  and  papers  come  up  miss- 
ing, and  in  the  same  mail  come  papers  of  very  ancient  dates ;  but 
letters  once  missing  may  be  considered  as  irrevocably  lost.  Of  all 
the  numerous  numbers  of  Harper's,  Gleasorfs,  and  other  illustrated 
periodicals  subscribed  for  by  the  inhabitants  of  this  territory,  not 
one,  I  have  been  informed,  has  ever  reached  here." 

The  forces  selected  for  the  expedition  to  Utah  consisted  of  the 
Second  Dragoons,  then  stationed  at  Fort  Leavenworth  in  view  of 
possible  trouble  in  Kansas ;  the  Fifth  Infantry,  stationed  at  that 
time  in  Florida  ;  the  Tenth  Infantry,  then  in  the  forts  in  Minnesota ; 
and  Phelps's  Battery  of  the  Fourth  Artillery,  that  had  distinguished 
itself  at  Buena  Vista  —  a  total  of  about  fifteen  hundred  men. 
Reno's  Battery  was  added  later. 

General  Scott's  order  provided  for  two  thousand  head  of  cattle 
to  be  driven  with  the  troops,  six  months'  supply  of  bacon,  desic- 
cated vegetables,  250  Sibley  tents,  and  stoves  enough  to  supply  at 
least  the  sick.  General  Scott  himself  had  advised  a  postponement 
of  the  expedition  until  the  next  year,  on  account  of  the  late  date 
at  which  it  would  start,  but  he  was  overruled.  The  commander 
originally  selected  for  this  force  was  General  W.  S.  Harney ;  but 
the  continued  troubles  in  Kansas  caused  his  retention  there  (as 
well  as  that  of  the  Second  Dragoons),  and,  when  the  government 
found  that  the  Mormons  proposed   serious  resistance,   the   chief 


482  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

command  was  given  to  Colonel  Albert  Sidney  Johnston,  a  West 
Point  graduate,  who  had  made  a  record  in  the  Black  Hawk  War ; 
in  the  service  of  the  state  of  Texas,  first  in  1836  under  General 
Rusk,  and  eventually  as  commander-in-chief  in  the  field,  and  later 
as  Secretary  of  War  ;  and  in  the  Mexican  War  as  colonel  of  the 
First  Texas  Rifles.  He  was  killed  at  the  battle  of  Shiloh  during 
the  War  of  the  Rebellion. 

General  Harney's  letter  of  instruction,  dated  June  29,  giving  the 
views  of  General  Scott  and  the  War  Department,  stated  that  the  civil 
government  in  Utah  was  in  a  state  of  rebellion  ;  he  was  to  attack 
no  body  of  citizens,  however,  except  at  the  call  of  the  governor, 
the  judges,  or  the  marshals,  the  troops  to  be  considered  as  a  posse 
comitatus;  he  was  made  responsible  for  "a  jealous,  harmonious, 
and  thorough  cooperation  "  with  the  governor,  accepting  his  views 
when  not  in  conflict  with  military  judgment  and  prudence.  While 
the  general  impression,  both  at  Washington  and  among  the  troops, 
was  that  no  actual  resistance  to  this  force  would  be  made  by 
Young's  followers,  the  general  was  told  that  "  prudence  requires 
that  you  should  anticipate  resistance,  general,  organized,  and 
formidable,  at  the  threshold." 

Great  activity  was  shown  in  forwarding  the  necessary  supplies 
to  Fort  Leavenworth,  and  in  the  last  two  weeks  of  July  most  of 
the  assigned  troops  were  under  way.  Colonel  Johnston  arrived  at 
Fort  Leavenworth  on  September  11,  assigned  six  companies  of  the 
Second  Dragoons,  under  Lieutenant  Colonel  P.  St.  George  Cooke, 
as  an  escort  to  Governor  dimming,  and  followed  immediately  after 
them.  Major  (afterward  General)  Fitz  John  Porter,  who  accom- 
panied Colonel  Johnston  as  assistant  adjutant  general,  describing 
the  situation  in  later  years,  said :  — 

"  So  late  in  the  season  had  the  troops  started  on  this  march  that  fears  were 
entertained  that,  if  they  succeeded  in  reaching  their  destination,  it  would  be  only 
by  abandoning  the  greater  part  of  their  supplies,  and  endangering  the  lives  of 
many  men  amid  the  snows  of  the  Rocky  Mountains.  So  much  was  a  terrible  dis- 
aster feared  by  those  acquainted  with  the  rigors  of  a  winter  life  in  the  Rocky 
Mountains,  that  General  Harney  was  said  to  have  predicted  it,  and  to  have 
induced  Walker  [of  Kansas]  to  ask  his  retention." 

Meanwhile,  the  Mormons  had  received  word  of  what  was  com- 
ing. When  A.  O.  Smoot  reached  a  point  one  hundred  miles  west 
of  Independence,  with  the  mail  for  Salt  Lake  City,  he  met  heavy 


THE   MORMON   "WAR"  483 

freight  teams  which  excited  his  suspicion,  and  at  Kansas  City- 
obtained  sufficient  particulars  of  the  federal  expedition.  Returning 
to  Fort  Laramie,  he  and  O.  P.  Rockwell  started  on  July  18,  in  a 
light  wagon  drawn  by  two  fast  horses,  to  carry  the  news  to  Brig- 
ham  Young.  They  made  the  513  miles  in  five  days  and  three 
hours,  arriving  on  the  evening  of  July  23.  Undoubtedly  they 
gave  Young  this  important  information  immediately.  But  Young 
kept  it  to  himself  that  night.  On  the  following  day  occurred  the 
annual  celebration  of  the  arrival  of  the  pioneers  in  the  valley.  To 
the  big  gathering  of  Saints  at  Big  Cottonwood  Lake,  twenty-four 
miles  from  the  city,  Young  dramatically  announced  the  news  of 
the  coming  "invasion."  His  position  was  characteristically  defi- 
ant. He  declared  that  "  he  would  ask  no  odds  of  Uncle  Sam  or 
the  devil,"  and  predicted  that  he  would  be  President  of  the  United 
States  in  twelve  years,  or  would  dictate  the  successful  candidate. 
Recalling  his  declaration  ten  years  earlier  that,  after  ten  years  of 
peace,  they  would  ask  no  odds  of  the  United  States,  he  declared 
that  that  time  had  passed,  and  that  thenceforth  they  would  be  a 
free  and  independent  state  —  the  State  of  Deseret.     • 

The  followers  of  Young  eagerly  joined  in  his  defiance  of  the 
government,  and  in  the  succeeding  weeks  the  discourses  and  the 
editorials  of  the  Deseret  News  breathed  forth  dire  threats  against 
the  advancing  foe.  Thus,  the  News  of  August  12  told  the  Wash- 
ington authorities,  "  If  you  intend  to  continue  the  appointment 
of  certain  officers,"  —  that  is,  if  you  do  not  intend  to  surrender 
to  the  church  federal  jurisdiction  in  Utah —  "we  respectfully  sug- 
gest that  you  appoint  actually  intelligent  and  honorable  men, who 
will  wisely  attend  to  their  own  duties,  and  send  them  unaccom- 
panied by  troops" — that  is,  judges  who  would  acknowledge  the 
supremacy  of  the  Mormon  courts,  or  who,  if  not,  would  have  no 
force  to  sustain  them.  This  was  followed  by  a  threat  that  if  any 
other  kind  of  men  were  sent  "  they  will  really  need  a  far  larger 
bodyguard  than  twenty-five  hundred  soldiers."  1     The  government 

1  An  Englishman,  in  a  letter  to  the  New  York  Observer,  dated  London,  May  26, 
1857,  said,  "The  English  Mormons  make  no  secret  of  their  expectation  that  a  collision 
will  take  place  with  the  American  authorities,"  and  he  quoted  from  a  Mormon  preacher's 
words  as  follows :  "  As  to  a  collision  with  the  American  Government,  there  cannot  be 
two  opinions  on  the  matter.  We  shall  have  judges,  governors,  senators  and  dragoons 
invading  us,  imprisoning  and  murdering  us;  but  we  are  prepared,  and  are  preparing 
judges,  governors,  senators  and  dragoons  who  will  know  how  to  dispose  of  their  friends. 


484  THE   STORY   OF  THE   MORMONS 

was,  in  another  editorial,  called  on  to  "  entirely  clear  the  track, 
and  accord  us  the  privilege  of  carrying  our  own  mails  at  our  own 
expense,"  and  was  accused  of  "high  handedly  taking  away  our 
rights  and  privileges,  one  by  one,  under  pretext  that  the  most 
devilish  should  blush  at." 

Young  in  the  pulpit  was  in  his  element.  One  example  of  his 
declarations  must  suffice  :  — 

"  I  am  not  going  to  permit  troops  here  for  the  protection  of  the  priests  and 
the  rabble  in  their  efforts  to  drive  us  from  the  land  we  possess.  .  .  .  You  might 
as  well  tell  me  that  you  can  make  hell  into  a  powder  house  as  to  tell  me  that 
they  intend  to  keep  an  army  here  and  have  peace.  ...  I  have  told  you  that  if 
there  is  any  man  or  woman  who  is  not  willing  to  destroy  everything  of  their 
property  that  would  be  of  use  to  an  enemy  if  left,  I  would  advise  them  to  leave 
the  territory,  and  I  again  say  so  to-day ;  for  when  the  time  comes  to  burn  and  lay 
waste  our  improvements,  if  any  man  undertakes  to  shield  his,  he  will  be  treated 
as  a  traitor ;  for  judgment  will  be  laid  to  the  line  and  righteousness  to  the  plum- 
met."1 

The  official  papers  of  Governor  Young  are  perhaps  the  best 
illustrations  of  the  spirit  with  which  the  federal  authorities  had  to 
deal. 

Words,  however,  were  not  the  only  weapons  which  the  Mormons 
employed  against  the  government  at  the  start.  Daniel  H.  Wells, 
"  Lieutenant  General  "  and  commander  of  the  Nauvoo  Legion, 
which  organization  had  been  kept  up  in  Utah,  issued,  on  August  1, 
a  despatch  to  each  of  twelve  commanding  officers  of  the  Legion  in 
the  different  settlements  in  the  territory,  declaring  that  "  when 
anarchy  takes  the  place  of  orderly  government,  and  mobocratic 
tyranny  usurps  the  powers  of  the  rulers,  they  [the  people  of  the 
territory]  have  left  the  inalienable  right  to  defend  themselves 
against  all  aggression  upon  their  constitutional  privileges  " ;  and 
directing  them  to  hold  their  commands  ready  to  march  to  any 
part  of  the  territory,  with  ammunition,  wagons,  and  clothing  for  a 
winter  campaign.  In  the  Legion  were  enrolled  all  the  able-bodied 
males  between  eighteen  and  forty-five  years,  under  command  of  a 
lieutenant  general,  four  generals,  eleven  colonels,  and  six  majors. 

The  first  mobilization  of  this  force  took  place  on  August  15, 

The  little  stone  will  come  into  collision  with  the  iron  and  clay  and  grind  them  to  powder. 
It  will  be  in  Utah  as  it  was  in  Nauvoo,  with  this  difference,  we  are  prepared  now  for  offen- 
sive or  defensive  war;   we  were  not  then." 

1  Tullidge's  "  History  of  Salt  Lake  City,"  p.  160. 


THE   MORMON   "WAR"  485 

when  a  company  was  sent  eastward  over  the  usual  route  to  aid 
incoming  immigrants  and  learn  the  strength  of  the  federal  force. 
By  the  employment  of  similar  scouts  the  Mormons  were  thus  kept 
informed  of  every  step  of  the  army's  advance.  A  scouting  party 
camped  within  half  a  mile  of  the  foremost  company  near  Devil's 
Gate  on  September  22,  and  did  not  lose  sight  of  it  again  until  it 
went  into  camp  at  Harris's  Fort,  where  supplies  had  been  forwarded 
in  advance. 

Captain  Stewart  Van  Vliet,  of  General  Harney's  staff,  was  sent 
ahead  of  the  troops,  leaving  Fort  Leavenworth  on  July  28,  to  visit 
Salt  Lake  City,  ascertain  the  disposition  of  the  church  authorities 
and  the  people  toward  the  government,  and  obtain  any  other  infor- 
mation that  would  be  of  use.  Arriving  in  Salt  Lake  City  in  thirty- 
three  and  a  half  days,  he  was  received  with  affability  by  Young, 
and  there  was  a  frank  interchange  of  views  between  them.  Young 
recited  the  past  trials  of  the  Mormons  farther  east,  and  said  that 
"  therefore  he  and  the  people  of  Utah  had  determined  to  resist  all 
persecution  at  the  commencement,  and  that  the  troops  noiv  on  the 
march  for  Utah  should  not  enter  the  Great  Salt  Lake  Valley.  As 
he  uttered  these  words,  all  those  present  concurred  most  heartily." 1 
Young  said  they  had  an  abundance  of  everything  required  by  the 
federal  troops,  but  that  nothing  would  be  sold  to  the  government. 
When  told  that,  even  if  they  did  succeed  in  preventing  the  present 
military  force  from  entering  the  valley  the  coming  winter,  they 
would  have  to  yield  to  a  larger  force  the  following  year,  the  reply 
was  that  that  larger  force  would  find  Utah  a  desert;  they  would 
burn  every  house,  cut  down  every  tree,  lay  waste  every  field.  "  We 
have  three  years'  provisions  on  hand,"  Young  added,  "which  we 
will  cache,  and  then  take  to  the  mountains  and  bid  defiance  to  all 
the  powers  of  the  government." 

When  Young  called  for  a  vote  on  that  proposition  by  an  audi- 
ence of  four  thousand  persons  in  the  Tabernacle,  every  hand  was 

1  The  quotations  are  from  Captain  Van  Vliet's  official  report  in  House  Ex.  Doc. 
No.  71,  previously  referred  to.  Tullidge's  "History  of  Salt  Lake  City"  (p.  161)  gives 
extracts  from  Apostle  Woodruff's  private  journal  of  notes  on  the  interview  between 
Young  and  Captain  Van  Vliet,  on  September  12  and  13,  in  which  Young  is  reported  as 
saying :  "  We  do  not  want  to  fight  the  United  States,  but  if  they  drive  us  to  it  we  shall 
do  the  best  we  can.  God  will  overthrow  them.  We  are  the  supporters  of  the  constitu- 
tion of  the  United  States.  If  they  dare  to  force  the  issue,  I  shall  not  hold  the  Indians 
by  the  wrist  any  longer  for  white  men  to  shoot  at  them;  they  shall  go  ahead  and  do  as 
they  please." 


486  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

raised  to  vote  yes.  Captain  Van  Vliet  summed  up  his  view  of  the 
situation  thus :  that  it  would  not  be  difficult  for  the  Mormons  to 
prevent  the  entrance  of  the  approaching  force  that  season ;  that 
they  would  not  resort  to  actual  hostilities  until  the  last  moment, 
but  would  burn  the  grass,  stampede  the  animals,  and  cause  delay 
in  every  manner. 

The  day  after  Captain  Van  Vliet  left  Salt  Lake  City,  Governor 
Young  gave  official  expression  to  his  defiance  of  the  federal  gov- 
ernment by  issuing  the  following  proclamation  :  — 

"  Citizens  of  Utah  :  We  are  invaded  by  a  hostile  force,  who  are  evidently 
assailing  us  to  accomplish  our  overthrow  and  destruction. 

"  For  the  last  twenty-five  years  we  have  trusted  officials  of  the  government, 
from  constables  and  justices  to  judges,  governors,  and  Presidents,  only  to  be 
scorned,  held  in  derision,  insulted,  and  betrayed.  Our  houses  have  been  plun- 
dered and  then  burned,  our  fields  laid  waste,  our  principal  men  butchered,  while 
under  the  pledged  faith  of  the  government  for  their  safety,  and  our  families  driven 
from  their  homes  to  find  that  shelter  in  the  barren  wilderness  and  that  protection 
among  hostile  savages,  which  were  denied  them  in  the  boasted  abodes  of  Christi- 
anity and  civilization. 

"  The  constitution  of  our  common  country  guarantees  unto  us  all  that  we  do 
now  or  have  ever  claimed.  If  the  constitutional  rights  which  pertain  unto  us  as 
American  citizens  were  extended  to  Utah,  according  to  the  spirit  and  meaning 
thereof,  and  fairly  and  impartially  administered,  it  is  all  that  we  can  ask,  all  that 
we  have  ever  asked. 

"  Our  opponents  have  availed  themselves  of  prejudice  existing  against  us, 
because  of  our  religious  faith,  to  send  out  a  formidable  host  to  accomplish  our 
destruction.  We  have  had  no  privilege  or  opportunity  of  defending  ourselves 
from  the  false,  foul,  and  unjust  aspersions  against  us  before  the  nation.  The 
government  has  not  condescended  to  cause  an  investigating  committee,  or  other 
persons,  to  be  sent  to  inquire  into  and  ascertain  the  truth,  as  is  customary  in  such 
cases.  We  know  those  aspersions  to  be  false;  but  that  avails  us  nothing.  We 
are  condemned  unheard,  and  forced  to  an  issue  with  an  armed  mercenary  mob, 
which  has  been  sent  against  us  at  the  instigation  of  anonymous  letter  writers, 
ashamed  to  father  the  base,  slanderous  falsehoods  which  they  have  given  to  the 
public  ;  of  corrupt  officials,  who  have  brought  false  accusations  against  us  to  screen 
themselves  in  their  own  infamy ;  and  of  hireling  priests  and  howling  editors,  who 
prostitute  the  truth  for  filthy  lucre's  sake. 

"  The  issue  which  has  thus  been  forced  upon  us  compels  us  to  resort  to  the 
great  first  law  of  self-preservation,  and  stand  in  our  own  defence,  a  right  guaran- 
teed to  us  by  the  genius  of  the  institutions  of  our  country,  and  upon  which  the 
government  is  based.  Our  duty  to  ourselves,  to  our  families,  requires  us  not  to 
tamely  submit  to  be  driven  and  slain,  without  an  attempt  to  preserve  ourselves ; 
our  duty  to  our  country,  our  holy  religion,  our  God,  to  freedom  and  liberty,  re- 
quires that  we  should  not  quietly  stand  still  and  see  those  fetters  forging  around 


THE   MORMON   "WAR"  487 

us  which  were  calculated  to  enslave  and  bring  us  in  subjection  to  an  unlawful, 
military  despotism,  such  as  can  only  emanate,  in  a  country  of  constitutional  law, 
from  usurpation,  tyranny,  and  oppression. 

"Therefore,  I,  Brigham  Young,  Governor  and  Superintendent  of  Indian 
Affairs  for  the  Territory  of  Utah,  in  the  name  of  the  people  of  the  United  States 
in  the  Territory  of  Utah,  forbid  :  — 

"  First.  All  armed  forces  of  every  description  from  coming  into  this  Terri- 
tory, under  any  pretence  whatever. 

"Second.  That  all  forces  in  said  Territory  hold  themselves  in  readiness  to 
march  at  a  moment's  notice  to  repel  any  and  all  such  invasion. 

"Third.  Martial  law  is  hereby  declared  to  exist  in  this  Territory  from  and 
after  the  publication  of  this  proclamation,  and  no  person  shall  be  allowed  to  pass 
or  repass  into  or  through  or  from  this  Territory  without  a  permit  from  the  proper 
officer. 

"  Given  under  my  hand  and  seal,  at  Great  Salt  Lake  City,  Territory  of  Utah, 
this  15th  day  of  September,  a.d.  1857,  and  of  the  independence  of  the  United 
States  of  America  the  eighty-second.  u  brigham  Young  " 

The  advancing  troops  received  from  Captain  Van  Vliet  as  he 
passed  eastward  their  first  information  concerning  the  attitude  of 
the  Mormons  toward  them,  and  Colonel  Alexander,  in  command 
of  the  foremost  companies,  accepted  his  opinion  that  the  Mormons 
would  not  attack  them  if  the  army  did  not  advance  beyond  Fort 
Bridger  or  Fort  Supply,  this  idea  being  strengthened  by  the  fact 
that  one  hundred  wagon  loads  of  stores,  undefended,  had  remained 
unmolested  on  Ham's  Fork  for  three  weeks.  The  first  division  of 
the  federal  troops  marched  across  Greene  River  on  September  27, 
and  hurried  on  thirty-five  miles  to  what  was  named  Camp  Winfield, 
on  Ham's  Fork,  a  confluent  of  Black  Fork,  which  emptied  into 
Greene  River.  Phelps's  and  Reno's  batteries  and  the  Fifth  Infantry 
reached  there  about  the  same  time,  but  there  was  no  cavalry,  the 
kind  of  force  most  needed,  because  of  the  detention  of  the  Dragoons 
in  Kansas. 

On  September  30  General  Wells  forwarded  to  Colonel  Alexan- 
der, from  Fort  Bridger,  Brigham  Young's  proclamation  of  Sep- 
tember 15,  a  copy  of  the  laws  of  Utah,  and  the  following  letter 
addressed  to  "  the  officer  commanding  the  forces  now  invading 

Utah  Territory  " :  — 

"Governor's  Office,  Utah  Territory, 
Great  Salt  Lake  City,  September  29,  1857. 
"  Sir :     By  reference  to  the  act  of  Congress  passed  September  9,  1850,  organ- 
izing the  Territory  of  Utah,  published  in  a  copy  of  the  laws  of  Utah,  herewith 
forwarded,  pp.  146-147,  you  will  find  the  following:  — 


488  THE   STORY   OF  THE   MORMONS 

"  '  Sec.  2.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  that  the  executive  power  and  authority 
in  and  over  said  Territory  of  Utah  shall  be  vested  in  a  Governor,  who  shall  hold 
his  office  for  four  years,  and  until  his  successor  shall  be  appointed  and  qualified, 
unless  sooner  removed  by  the  President  of  the  United  States.  The  Governor 
shall  reside  within  said  Territory,  shall  be  Commander-in-chief  of  the  militia 
thereof,  etc.,  etc. 

"I  am  still  the  Governor  and  Superintendent  of  Indian  Affairs  for  this  Terri- 
tory, no  successor  having  been  appointed  and  qualified,  as  provided  by  law ;  nor 
have  I  been  removed  by  the  President  of  the  United  States. 

"  By  virtue  of  the  authority  thus  vested  in  me,  I  have  issued,  and  forwarded 
you  a  copy  of,  my  proclamation  forbidding  the  entrance  of  armed  forces  into  this 
Territory.  This  you  have  disregarded.  I  now  further  direct  that  you  retire  forth- 
with from  the  Territory,  by  the  same  route  you  entered.  Should  you  deem  this 
impracticable,  and  prefer  to  remain  until  spring  in  the  vicinity  of  your  present 
encampment,  Black's  Fork  or  Greene  River,  you  can  do  so  in  peace  and  unmo- 
lested, on  condition  that  you  deposit  your  arms  and  ammunition  with  Lewis 
Robinson,  Quartermaster  General  of  the  Territory,  and  leave  in  the  spring,  as 
soon  as  the  condition  of  the  roads  will  permit  you  to  march  ;  and,  should  you 
fall  short  of  provisions,  they  can  be  furnished  you,  upon  making  the  proper  appli- 
cations therefor.  General  D.  H.  Wells  will  forward  this,  and  receive  any  com- 
munications you  may  have  to  make. 

"  Very  respectfully, 

"  Brigham  Young, 
"Governor  and  Superintendent  of  Indian  Affairs,  Utah  Territory." 

General  Wells's  communication  added  to  this  impudent  an- 
nouncement the  declaration,  "  It  may  be  proper  to  add  that  I  am 
here  to  aid  in  carrying  out  the  instructions  of  Governor  Young." 

On  October  2  Colonel  Alexander,  in  a  note  to  Governor  Young, 
acknowledged  the  receipt  of  his  enclosures,  said  that  he  would  sub- 
mit Young's  letter  to  the  general  commanding  as  soon  as  he  arrived, 
and  added,  "  In  the  meantime  I  have  only  to  say  that  these  troops 
are  here  by  the  orders  of  the  President  of  the  United  States,  and 
their  future  movements  and  operations  will  depend  entirely  upon 
orders  issued  by  competent  military  authority." 

Two  Mormon  officers,  General  Robinson  and  Major  Lot  Smith, 
had  been  sent  to  deliver  Young's  letter  and  proclamation  to  the 
federal  officer  in  command,  but  they  did  not  deem  it  prudent  to 
perform  this  office  in  person,  sending  a  Mexican  with  them  into 
Colonel  Alexander's  camp.1  In  the  same  way  they  received 
Colonel  Alexander's  reply. 

The  Mormon  plan  of  campaign  was  already  mapped  out,  and 

1  Tullidge's  "  History  of  Salt  Lake  City,"  p.  171. 


THE    MORMON    "WAR"  489 

it  was  thus  stated  in  an  order  of  their  commanding  general,  D.  H. 
Wells,  a  copy  of  which  was  found  on  a  Mormon  major,  Joseph 
Taylor,  to  whom  it  was  addressed  :  — 

"  You  will  proceed,  with  all  possible  despatch,  without  injuring  your  animals, 
to  the  Oregon  road,  near  the  bend  of  Bear  River,  north  by  east  of  this  place. 
Take  close  and  correct  observations  of  the  country  on  your  route.  When  you 
approach  the  road,  send  scouts  ahead  to  ascertain  if  the  invading  troops  have  passed 
that  way.  Should  they  have  passed,  take  a  concealed  route  and  get  ahead  of 
them,  express  to  Colonel  Benton,  who  is  now  on  that  road  and  in  the  vicinity  of 
the  troops,  and  effect  a  junction  with  him,  so  as  to  operate  in  concert.  On  ascer- 
taining the  locality  or  route  of  the  troops,  proceed  at  once  to  annoy  them  in  every 
possible  way.  Use  every  exertion  to  stampede  their  animals  and  set  fire  to  their 
trains.  Burn  the  whole  country  before  them  and  on  their  flanks.  Keep  them 
from  sleeping  by  night  surprises  ;  blockade  the  road  by  felling  trees  or  destroying 
river  fords,  where  you  can.  Watch  for  opportunities  to  set  fire  to  the  grass  on 
their  windward,  so  as  if  possible  to  envelop  their  trains.  Leave  no  grass  before 
them  that  can  be  burned.  Keep  your  men  concealed  as  much  as  possible,  and 
guard  against  surprise.  Keep  scouts  out  at  all  times,  and  communications  open 
with  Colonel  Benton,  Major  McAllster  and  O.  P.  Rockwell,  who  are  operating  in 
the  same  way.  Keep  me  advised  daily  of  your  movements,  and  every  step  the 
troops  take,  and  in  which  direction. 

"  God  bless  you  and  give  you  success.     Your  brother  in  Christ." 

The  first  man  selected  to  carry  out  this  order  was  Major  Lot 
Smith.  Setting  out  at  4  p.m.,  on  October  3,  with  forty-four  men, 
after  an  all  night's  ride,  he  came  up  with  a  federal  supply  train 
drawn  by  oxen.  The  captain  of  this  train  was  ordered  to  "  go  the 
other  way  till  he  reached  the  States."  As  he  persistently  retraced 
his  steps  as  often  as  the  Mormons  moved  away,  the  latter  relieved 
his  wagons  of  their  load  and  left  him.  Sending  one  of  his  captains 
with  twenty  men  to  capture  or  stampede  the  mules  of  the  Tenth 
Regiment,  Smith,  with  the  remainder  of  his  force,  started  for  Sandy 
Fork  to  intercept  army  trains. 

Scouts  sent  ahead  to  investigate  a  distant  cloud  of  dust  re- 
ported that  it  was  made  by  a  freight  train  of  twenty-six  wagons. 
Smith  allowed  this  train  to  proceed  until  dark,  and  then  approached 
it  undiscovered.  Finding  the  drivers  drunk,  as  he  afterward  ex- 
plained, and  fearing  that  they  would  be  belligerent  and  thus  com- 
pel him  to  disobey  his  instruction  "  not  to  hurt  any  one  except  in 
self-defence,"  he  lay  concealed  until  after  midnight.  His  scouts 
meanwhile  had  reported  to  him  that  the  train  was  drawn  up  for 
the  night  in  two  lines.     Allowing  the  usual  number  of  men  to  each 


490  THE    STORY    OF    THE   MORMONS 

wagon,  Smith  decided  that  his  force  of  twenty-four  was  sufficient 
to  capture  the  outfit,  and,  mounting  his  command,  he  ordered  an 
advance  on  the  camp.  But  a  surprise  was  in  store  for  him.  His 
scouts  had  failed  to  discover  that  a  second  train  had  joined  the 
first,  and  that  twice  the  force  anticipated  confronted  them.  When 
this  discovery  was  made,  the  Mormons  were  too  close  to  escape 
observation.  Members  of  Smith's  party  expected  that  their  leader 
would  now  make  some  casual  inquiry  and  then  ride  on,  as  if  his 
destination  were  elsewhere.  Smith,  however,  decided  differently. 
As  his  force  approached  the  camp-fire  that  was  burning  close  to  the 
wagons,  he  noticed  that  the  rear  of  his  column  was  not  distinguish- 
able in  the  darkness,  and  that  thus  the  smallness  of  their  number 
could  not  be  immediately  discovered.  He,  therefore,  asked  at 
once  for  the  captain  of  the  train,  and  one  Dawson  stepped  for- 
ward. Smith  directed  him  to  have  his  men  collect  their  private 
property  at  once,  as  he  intended  to  "  put  a  little  fire "  into  the 
wagons.  "  For  God's  sake,  don't  burn  the  trains,"  was  the  reply. 
Dawson  was  curtly  told  where  his  men  were  to  stack  their  arms, 
and  where  they  were  themselves  to  stand  under  guard.  Then, 
making  a  torch,  Smith  ordered  one  of  the  government  drivers  to 
apply  it,  in  order  that  "  the  Gentiles  might  spoil  the  Gentiles,"  as 
he  afterward  expressed  it.  The  destruction  of  the  supplies  was 
complete.  Smith  allowed  an  Indian  to  take  two  wagon  covers 
for  a  lodge,  and  some  flour  and  soap,  and  compelled  Dawson  to 
get  out  some  provisions  for  his  own  men.  Nothing  else  was 
spared. 

The  official  list  of  rations  thus  destroyed  included  2720  pounds 
of  ham,  92,700  of  bacon,  167,900  of  flour,  8910  of  coffee,  1400  of 
sugar,  1333  of  soap,  800  of  sperm  candles,  765  of  tea,  7781  of 
hard  bread,  and  68,832  rations  of  desiccated  vegetables. 

Another  train  was  destroyed  by  the  same  party  the  next  day 
on  the  Big  Sandy,  besides  a  few  sutlers'  wagons  that  were  strag- 
gling behind. 

On  October  5  Colonel  Alexander  assumed  command  of  all  the 
troops  in  the  camp.  He  found  his  position  a  trying  one.  In  a 
report  dated  October  8,  he  said  that  his  forage  would  last  only 
fourteen  days,  that  no  information  of  the  position  or  intentions  of 
the  commanding  officer  had  reached  him,  and  that,  strange  as  it 
may  appear,  he  was  "in  utter  ignorance  of  the  objects  of  the  gov- 


THE   MORMON   "WAR"  491 

ernment  in  sending  troops  here,  or  the  instructions  given  for  their 
conduct  after  reaching  here."  In  these  circumstances,  he  called  a 
council  of  his  officers  and  decided  to  advance  without  waiting  for 
Colonel  Johnston  and  the  other  companies,  as  he  believed  that  de- 
lay would  endanger  the  entire  force.  He  selected  as  his  route  to 
a  wintering  place,  not  the  most  direct  one  to  Salt  Lake  City,  inas- 
much as  the  canons  could  be  easily  defended,  but  one  twice  as 
long  (three  hundred  miles),  by  way  of  Soda  Springs,  and  thence 
either  down  Bear  River  Valley  or  northeast  toward  the  Wind  River 
Mountains,  according  to  the  resistance  he  might  encounter. 

The  march,  in  accordance  with  this  decision,  began  on  October 
11,  and  aweary  and  profitless  one  it  proved  to  be.  Snow  was 
falling  as  the  column  moved,  and  the  ground  was  covered  with  it 
during  their  advance.  There  was  no  trail,  and  a  road  had  to  be 
cut  through  the  greasewood  and  sage  brush.  The  progress  was  so 
slow  —  often  only  three  miles  a  day  —  and  the  supply  train  so  long, 
that  camp  would  sometimes  be  pitched  for  the  night  before  the 
rear  wagons  would  be  under  way.  Wells's  men  continued  to  carry 
out  his  orders,  and,  in  the  absence  of  federal  cavalry,  with  little 
opposition.  One  day  eight  hundred  oxen  were  "  cut  out "  and 
driven  toward  Salt  Lake  City. 

Conditions  like  these  destroyed  the  morale  of  both  officers  and 
men,  and  there  were  divided  counsels  among  the  former,  and  com- 
plaints among  the  latter.  Finally,  after  having  made  only  thirty- 
five  miles  in  nine  days,  Colonel  Alexander  himself  became 
discouraged,  called  another  council,  and,  in  obedience  to  its  deci- 
sion, on  October  19  directed  his  force  to  retrace  their  steps.  They 
moved  back  in  three  columns,  and  on  November  2  all  of  them  had 
reached  a  camp  on  Black's  Fork,  two  miles  above  Fort  Bridger. 

Colonel  Johnston  had  arrived  at  Fort  Laramie  on  October  5, 
and,  after  a  talk  with  Captain  Van  Vliet,  had  retained  two  addi- 
tional companies  of  infantry  that  were  on  the  way  to  Fort  Leaven- 
worth. As  he  proceeded,  rumors  of  the  burning  of  trains, 
exaggerated  as  is  usual  in  such  times,  reached  him.  Having  only 
about  three  hundred  men  to  guard  a  wagon  train  six  miles  in  length, 
some  of  the  drivers  showed  signs  of  panic,  and  the  colonel  deemed 
the  situation  so  serious  that  he  accepted  an  offer  of  fifty  or  sixty 
volunteers  from  the  force  of  the  superintendent  of  the  South  Pass 
wagon  road.     He  was  fortunate  in  having  as  his  guide  the  well- 


492  THE    STORY    OF   THE   MORMONS 

known  James  Bridger,  to  whose  knowledge  of  Rocky  Mountain 
weather  signs  they  owed  escapes  from  much  discomfort,  by  making 
camps  in  time  to  avoid  coming  storms. 

But  even  in  camp  a  winter  snowstorm  is  serious  to  a  moving 
column,  especially  when  it  deprives  the  animals  of  their  forage,  as 
it  did  now.  The  forage  supply  was  almost  exhausted  when  South 
Pass  was  reached,  and  the  draught  and  beef  cattle  were  in  a  sad 
plight.  Then  came  another  big  snowstorm  and  a  temperature  of 
i6°,  during  which  eleven  mules  and  a  number  of  oxen  were  frozen 
to  death.  In  this  condition  of  affairs,  Colonel  Johnston  decided 
that  a  winter  advance  into  Salt  Lake  Valley  was  impracticable. 
Learning  of  Colonel  Alexander's  move,  which  he  did  not  approve, 
he  sent  word  for  him  to  join  forces  with  his  own  command  on 
Black's  Fork,  and  there  the  commanding  officer  arrived  on 
November  3. 

Lieutenant  Colonel  Cooke,  of  the  Second  Dragoons,  with  whom 
Governor  Cumming  was  making  the  trip,  had  a  harrowing  experi- 
ence. There  was  much  confusion  in  organizing  his  regiment  of 
six  companies  at  Fort  Leavenworth,  and  he  did  not  begin  his 
march  until  September  17,  with  a  miserable  lot  of  mules  and 
insufficient  supplies.  He  found  little  grass  for  the  animals,  and 
after  crossing  the  South  Platte  on  October  1 5,  they  began  to  die  or  to 
drop  out.  From  that  point  snow  and  sleet  storms  were  encountered, 
and,  when  Fort  Laramie  was  reached,  so  many  of  the  animals  had 
been  left  behind  or  were  unable  to  travel,  that  some  of  his  men 
were  dismounted,  the  baggage  supply  was  reduced,  and  even  the 
ambulances  were  used  to  carry  grain.  After  passing  Devil's  Gate, 
they  encountered  a  snowstorm  on  November  5.  The  best  shelter 
their  guide  could  find  was  a  lofty  natural  wall  at  a  point  known  as 
Three  Crossings.  Describing  their  night  there  he  says  :  "  Only  a 
part  of  the  regiment  could  huddle  behind  the  rock  in  the  deep 
snow ;  whilst,  the  long  night  through,  the  storm  continued,  and  in 
fearful  eddies  from  above,  before,  behind,  drove  the  falling  and 
drifting  snow.  Thus  exposed,  for  the  hope  of  grass  the  poor 
animals  were  driven,  with  great  devotion,  by  the  men  once  more 
across  the  stream  and  three-quarters  of  a  mile  beyond,  to  the  base 
of  a  granite  ridge,  which  almost  faced  the  storm.  There  the 
famished  mules,  crying  piteously,  did  not  seek  to  eat,  but  desperately 
gathered  in  a  mass,  and  some  horses,  escaping  guard,  went  back 


THE   MORMON   "WAR"  493 

to  the  ford,  where  the  lofty  precipice  first  gave  us  so  pleasant  relief 
and  shelter." 

The  march  westward  was  continued  through  deep  snow  and 
against  a  cold  wind.  On  November  8  twenty-three  mules  had 
given  out,  and  five  wagons  had  to  be  abandoned.  On  the  night  of 
the  9th,  when  the  mules  were  tied  to  the  wagons,  "  they  gnawed 
and  destroyed  four  wagon  tongues,  a  number  of  wagon  covers, 
ate  their  ropes,  and  getting  loose,  ate  the  sage  fuel  collected  at  the 
tents."  On  November  10  nine  horses  were  left  dying  on  the  road, 
and  the  thermometer  was  estimated  to  have  marked  twenty-five 
degrees  below  zero.  Their  thermometers  were  all  broken,  but 
the  freezing  of  a  bottle  of  sherry  in  a  trunk  gave  them  a  basis  of 
calculation. 

The  command  reached  a  camp  three  miles  below  Fort  Bridger 
on  November  19.  Of  one  hundred  and  forty-four  horses  with 
which  they  started,  only  ten  reached  that  camp. 


CHAPTER   XIII 
THE   MORMON   PURPOSE 

When  Colonel  Johnston  arrived  at  the  Black's  Fork  camp  the 
information  he  received  from  Colonel  Alexander,  and  certain  cor- 
respondence with  the  Mormon  authorities,  gave  him  a  comprehen- 
sive view  of  the  situation;  and  on  November  5  he  forwarded  a 
report  to  army  headquarters  in  the  East,  declaring  that  it  was  the 
matured  design  of  the  Mormons  "to  hold  and  occupy  this  terri- 
tory independent  of  and  irrespective  of  the  authority  of  the  United 
States,"  entertaining  "  the  insane  design  of  establishing  a  form  of 
government  thoroughly  despotic,  and  utterly  repugnant  to  our 
institutions." 

The  correspondence  referred  to  began  with  a  letter  from  Brig- 
ham  Young  to  Colonel  Alexander,  dated  October  14.  Opening 
with  a  declaration  of  Young's  patriotism,  and  the  brazen  assertion 
that  the  people  of  Utah  "  had  never  resisted  even  the  wish  of  the 
President  of  the  United  States,  nor  treated  with  indignity  a  single 
individual  coming  to  the  territory  under  his  authority,"  he  went 
on  to  say  :  — 

"  But  when  the  President  of  the  United  States  so  far  degrades  his  high  posi- 
tion, and  prostitutes  the  highest  gift  of  the  people,  as  to  make  use  of  the  military 
power  (only  intended  for  the  protection  of  the  people's  rights)  to  crush  the  peo- 
ple's liberties,  and  compel  them  to  receive  officials  so  lost  to  self-respect  as  to 
accept  appointments  against  the  known  and  expressed  wish  of  the  people,  and  so 
craven  and  degraded  as  to  need  an  army  to  protect  them  in  their  position,  we 
feel  that  we  should  be  recreant  to  every  principle  of  self-respect,  honor,  integrity, 
and  patriotism  to  bow  tamely  to  such  high-handed  tyranny,  a  parallel  for  which 
is  only  found  in  the  attempts  of  the  British  government,  in  its  most  corrupt  stages, 
against  the  rights,  liberties,  and  lives  of  our  forefathers." 

He  then  appealed  to  Colonel  Alexander,  as  probably  "the 
unwilling  agent "  of  the  administration,  to  return  East  with  his 
force,  saying,  "  I  have  yet  to  learn  that  United  States  officers  are 

494 


THE   MORMON   PURPOSE  495 

implicitly  bound  to  obey  the  dictum  of  a  despotic  President,  in 
violating  the  most  sacred  constitutional  rights  of  American  citi- 
zens." 

On  October  18  Colonel  Alexander,  acknowledging  the  receipt 
of  Young's  letter,  said  in  his  reply  that  no  one  connected  with  his 
force  had  any  wish  to  interfere  in  any  way  with  the  religion  of  the 
people  of  Utah,  adding :  "  I  repeat  my  earnest  desire  to  avoid 
violence  and  bloodshed,  and  it  will  require  positive  resistance  to 
force  me  to  it.  But  my  troops  have  the  same  right  of  self-defence 
that  you  claim,  and  it  rests  entirely  with  you  whether  they  are 
driven  to  the  exercise  of  it." 

Finding  that  he  could  not  cajole  the  federal  officer,  Young 
threw  off  all  disguise,  and  in  reply  to  an  earlier  letter  of  Colonel 
Alexander,  he  gave  free  play  to  his  vituperative  powers.  After 
going  over  the  old  Mormon  complaints,  and  declaring  that  "both 
we  and  the  Kingdom  of  God  will  be  free  from  all  hellish  oppress- 
ors, the  Lord  being  our  helper,"  he  wrote  at  great  length  in  the 
following  tone :  — 

"  If  you  persist  in  your  attempt  to  permanently  locate  an  army  in  this  Terri- 
tory, contrary  to  the  wishes  and  constitutional  rights  of  the  people  therein,  and 
with  a  view  to  aid  the  administration  in  their  unhallowed  efforts  to  palm  their 
corrupt  officials  upon  us,  and  to  protect  them  and  blacklegs,  black-hearted  scoun- 
drels, whoremasters,  and  murderers,  as  was  the  sole  intention  in  sending  you  and 
your  troops  here,  you  will  have  to  meet  a  mode  of  warfare  against  which  your 
tactics  furnish  you  no  information.  .  .   . 

"  If  George  Washington  was  now  living,  and  at  the  helm  of  our  government, 
he  would  hang  the  administration  as  high  as  he  did  Andre",  and  that,  too,  with 
a  far  better  grace  and  to  a  much  greater  subserving  the  best  interests  of  our 
country.   .   .   . 

"  By  virtue  of  my  office  as  Governor  of  the  Territory  of  Utah,  I  command 
you  to  marshal  your  troops  and  leave  this  territory,  for  it  can  be  of  no  possible 
benefit  to  you  to  wickedly  waste  treasures  and  blood  in  prosecuting  your  course 
upon  the  side  of  a  rebellion  against  the  general  government  by  its  administra- 
tors. .  .  .  Were  you  and  your  fellow  officers  as  well  acquainted  with  your  sol- 
diers as  I  am  with  mine,  and  did  they  understand  the  work  they  were  now  engaged 
in  as  well  as  you  may  understand  it,  you  must  know  that  many  of  them  would 
immediately  revolt  from  all  connection  with  so  ungodly,  illegal,  unconstitutional 
and  hellish  a  crusade  against  an  innocent  people,  and  if  their  blood  is  shed  it  shall 
rest  upon  the  heads  of  their  commanders.  With  us  it  is  the  Kingdom  of  God  or 
nothing." 

To  this  Colonel  Alexander  replied,  on  the  19th,  that  no  citizen 
of  Utah  would   be    harmed  through   the   instrumentality  of   the 


496  THE   STORY   OF  THE   MORMONS 

army  in  the  performance  of  its  duties  without  molestation,  and  that, 
as  Young's  order  to  leave  the  territory  was  illegal  and  beyond 
his  authority,  it  would  not  be  obeyed. 

John  Taylor,  on  October  21,  added  to  this  correspondence  a 
letter  to  Captain  Marcy,  in  which  he  ascribed  to  party  necessity  — 
the  necessity  of  something  with  which  to  meet  the  declaration  of 
the  Republicans  against  polygamy  —  the  order  of  the  President 
that  troops  should  accompany  the  new  governor  to  Utah  ;  declared 
that  the  religion  of  the  Mormons  was  "  a  right  guaranteed  to  us 
by  the  constitution  " ;  and  reiterated  their  purpose,  if  driven  to 
it,  "  to  burn  every  house,  tree,  shrub,  rail,  every  patch  of  grass 
and  stack  of  straw  and  hay,  and  flee  to  the  mountains."  "  How 
a  large  army  would  fare  without  resources,"  he  added,  "you  can 
picture  to  yourself."  1 

The  Mormon  authorities  meant  just  what  they  said  from  the 
start.  Young  was  as  determined  to  be  the  head  of  the  civil  govern- 
ment of  the  territory  as  he  was  to  be  the  head  of  the  church.  He 
had  founded  a  practical  dictatorship,  with  power  over  life  and 
property,  and  had  discovered  that  such  a  dictatorship  was  neces- 
sary to  the  regulation  of  the  flock  that  he  had  gathered  around 
him  and  to  the  schemes  that  he  had  in  mind.  To  permit  a  federal 
governor  to  take  charge  of  the  territory,  backed  up  by  troops 
who  would  sustain  him  in  his  authority,  meant  an  end  to  Young's 
absolute  rule.  Rather  than  submit  to  this,  he  stood  ready  to  make 
the  experiment  of  fighting  the  government  force,  separated  as  that 
force  was  from  its  Eastern  base  of  supplies  ;  to  lay  waste  the  Mormon 
settlements,  if  it  became  necessary  to  use  this  method  of  causing 
a  federal  retreat  by  starvation ;  and,  if  this  failed,  to  withdraw  his 
flock  to  some  new  Zion  farther  south. 

In  accordance  with  this  view,  as  soon  as  news  of  the  approach 
of  the  troops  reached  Salt  Lake  Valley,  all  the  church  industries 
stopped;  war  supplies  —  weapons  and  clothing  —  were  manufac- 
tured and  accumulated ;  all  the  elders  in  Europe  were  ordered 
home,  and  the  outlying  colonies  in  Carson  Valley  and  in  southern 
California  were  directed  to  hasten  to  Salt  Lake  City.  A  corre- 
spondent of  the  San  Francisco  Bulletin  at  San  Bernardino,  Cali- 
fornia, reported  that  in  the  last  six  months  the  Mormons  there 

1  Text  of  this  letter  in  House  Ex.  Doc.  No.  71,  1st  Session,  35th  Congress,  and 
Tullidge's  "  History  of  Salt  Lake  City." 


THE   MORMON   PURPOSE  497 

had  sent  four  or  five  tons  of  gunpowder  and  many  weapons  to 
Utah,  and  that,  when  the  order  to  "gather"  at  the  Mormon  me- 
tropolis came,  they  sacrificed  everything  to  obey  it,  selling  real 
estate  at  a  reduction  of  from  20  to  50  per  cent,  and  furniture  for 
any  price  that  it  would  bring.  The  same  sacrifices  were  made  in 
Carson  Valley,  where  1 50  wagons  were  required  to  accommodate 
the  movers. 

In  Salt  Lake  City  the  people  were  kept  wrought  up  to  the 
highest  pitch  by  the  teachings  of  their  leaders.  Thus,  Amasa  W. 
Lyman  told  them,  on  October  8,  that  they  would  not  be  driven 
away,  because  "the  time  has  come  when  the  Kingdom  of  God 
should  be  built  up."  *  Young  told  them  the  same  day,  "  If  we 
will  stand  up  as  men  and  women  of  God,  the  yoke  shall  never  be 
placed  upon  our  necks  again,  and  all  hell  cannot  overthrow  us, 
even  with  the  United  States  troops  to  help  them."  2  Kimball  told 
the  people  in  the  Tabernacle,  on  October  18  :  "They  [the  United 
States]  will  have  to  make  peace  with  us,  and  we  never  again  shall 
make  peace  with  them.  If  they  come  here,  they  have  got  to  give 
up  their  arms."  Describing  his  plan  of  campaign,  at  the  same 
service,  after  the  reading  of  the  correspondence  between  Young 
and  Colonel  Alexander,  Young  said  :  "  Do  you  want  to  know  what 
is  going  to  be  done  with  the  enemies  now  on  our  border  ?  As 
soon  as  they  start  to  come  into  our  settlements,  let  sleep  depart 
from  their  eyes  and  slumber  from  their  eyelids  until  they  sleep  in 
death.  Men  shall  be  secreted  here  and  there,  and  shall  waste 
away  our  enemies  in  the  name  of  Israel's  God."3 

Young  was  equally  explicit  in  telling  members  of  his  own  flock 
what  they  might  expect  if  they  tried  to  depart  at  that  time.  In  a 
discourse  in  the  Tabernacle,  on  October  25,  he  said :  — 

"  If  any  man  or  woman  in  Utah  wants  to  leave  this  community,  come  to  me 
and  I  will  treat  you  kindly,  as  I  always  have,  and  will  assist  you  to  leave ;  but 
after  you  have  left  our  settlements  you  must  not  then  depend  upon  me  any  longer^ 
nor  upon  the  God  I  serve.  You  must  meet  the  doom  you  have  labored  for.  .  .  . 
After  this  season,  when  this  ignorant  army  has  passed  off,  I  shall  never  again  say 
to  a  man,  '  Stay  your  rifle  ball,'  when  our  enemies  assail  us,  but  shall  say,  '  Slay 
them  where  you  find  them.1"4 

Kimball,  on  November  8,  spoke  with  equal  plainness  on  this 
subject :  — 

1  Journal  of  Discourses,  Vol.  V,  p.  319.  s  Ibid.,  Vol.  V,  p.  338. 

2  Ibid.,  Vol.  V,  p.  332.  *  Ibid.,  Vol.  V,  p.  352. 

2  v- 


498  THE   STORY   OF  THE   MORMONS 

"  When  it  is  necessary  that  blood  should  be  shed,  we  should  be  as  ready  to 
do  that  as  to  eat  an  apple.  That  is  my  religion,  and  I  feel  that  our  platter  is 
pretty  near  clean  of  some  things,  and  we  calculate  to  keep  it  clean  from  this  time 
henceforth  and  forever.  .  .  .  And  if  men  and  women  will  not  live  their  religion, 
but  take  a  course  to  pervert  the  hearts  of  the  righteous,  we  will  '  lay  judgment  to 
the  line  and  righteousness  to  the  plummet,'  and  we  will  let  you  know  that  the 
earth  can  swallow  you  up  as  did  Koran  with  his  hosts ;  and,  as  Brother  Taylor 
says,  you  may  dig  your  graves,  and  we  will  slay  you  and  you  may  crawl  into 
them."1 

The  Mormon  songs  of  the  day  breathed  the  same  spirit  of 
defiance  to  the  United  States  authorities.  A  popular  one  at  the 
Tabernacle  services  began  :  — 

"  Old  Uncle  Sam  has  sent,  I  understand, 

Du  dah, 
A  Missouri  ass  to  rule  our  land, 

Du  dah!     Du  dah  day. 
But  if  he  comes  we'll  have  some  fun, 

Du  dah, 
To  see  him  and  his  juries  run, 

Du  dah !     Du  dah  day. 
Chorus :     Then  let  us  be  on  hand, 

By  Brigham  Young  to  stand, 
And  if  our  enemies  do  appear, 
We'll  sweep  them  from  the  land." 

Another  still  more  popular  song,  called  "  Zion,"  contained 
these  words :  — 

"  Here  our  voices  we'll  raise,  and  will  sing  to  thy  praise, 
Sacred  home  of  the  Prophets  of  God  ; 
Thy  deliverance  is  nigh,  thy  oppressors  shall  die, 
And  the  Gentiles  shall  bow  'neath  thy  rod." 

When  the  Mormons  found  that  the  federal  forces  had  gone 
into  winter  quarters,  the  Nauvoo  Legion  was  massed  in  a  camp 
called  Camp  Weber,  at  the  mouth  of  Echo  Canon.  This  canon 
they  fortified  with  ditches  and  breastworks,  and  some  dams  in- 
tended to  flood  the  roadway ;  but  they  succeeded  in  erecting  no 
defences  which  could  not  have  been  easily  overcome  by  a  disci- 
plined force.  A  watch  was  set  day  and  night,  so  that  no  move- 
ment of  "  the  invaders  "  could  escape  them,  and  the  officer  in  charge 
was  particularly  forbidden  to  allow  any  civil  officer  appointed  by 

1  Journal  of  Discourses,  Vol.  VI,  p.  34. 


THE    MORMON    PURPOSE  499 

the  President  to  pass.  This  careful  arrangement  was  kept  up  all 
winter,  but  Tullidge  says  that  no  spies  were  necessary,  as  deserting 
soldiers  and  teamsters  from  the  federal  camp  kept  coming  into  the 
valley  with  information. 

The  territorial  legislature  met  in  December,  and  approved  Gov- 
ernor Young's  course,  every  member  signing  a  pledge  to  maintain 
"the  rights  and  liberties"  of  the  territory.  The  legislators  sent  a 
memorial  to  Congress,  dated  January  6,  1858,  demanding  to  be 
informed  why  "  a  hostile  course  is  pursued  toward  an  unoffending 
people,"  calling  the  officers  who  had  fled  from  the  territory  liars, 
declaring  that  "we  shall  not  again  hold  still  while  fetters  are 
being  forged  to  bind  us,"  etc.  This  offensive  document  reached 
Washington  in  March,  and  was  referred  in  each  House  to  the 
Committee  on  Territories,  where  it  remained. 

When  the  federal  forces  reached  Fort  Bridger,  they  found  that 
the  Mormons  had  burned  the  buildings,  and  it  was  decided  to 
locate  the  winter  camp  —  named  Camp  Scott  —  on  Black's  Fork, 
two  miles  above  the  fort.  The  governor  and  other  civil  officers 
spent  the  winter  in  another  camp  near  by,  named  "  Ecklesville," 
occupying  dugouts,  which  they  covered  with  an  upper  story  of 
plastered  logs.  There  was  a  careful  apportionment  of  rations,  but 
no  suffering  for  lack  of  food. 

An  incident  of  the  winter  was  the  expedition  of  Captain 
Randolph  B.  Marcy  across  the  Uinta  Mountains  to  New  Mexico, 
with  two  guides  and  thirty-five  volunteer  companions,  to  secure 
needed  animals.  The  story  of  his  march  is  one  of  the  most 
remarkable  on  record,  the  company  pressing  on,  even  after  Indian 
guides  refused  to  accompany  them  to  what  they  said  was  certain 
death,  living  for  days  only  on  the  meat  supplied  by  half-starved 
mules,  and  beating  a  path  through  deep  snow.  This  march  con- 
tinued from  November  27  to  January  10,  when,  with  the  loss  of 
only  one  man,  they  reached  the  valley  of  the  Rio  del  Norte,  where 
supplies  were  obtained  from  Fort  Massachusetts.  Captain  Marcy 
started  back  on  March  17,  selecting  a  course  which  took  him  past 
Long's  and  Pike's  Peaks.  He  reached  Camp  Scott  on  June  8,  with 
about  fifteen  hundred  horses  and  mules,  escorted  by  five  companies 
of  infantry  and  mounted  riflemen. 

During  the  winter  Governor  dimming  sent  to  Brigham  Young 
a  proclamation  notifying  him  of  the  arrival  of  the  new  territorial 


500  THE   STORY    OF   THE   MORMONS 

officers,  and  assuring  the  people  that  he  would  resort  to  the  mili- 
tary posse  only  in  case  of  necessity.  Judge  Eckles  held  a  session 
of  the  United  States  District  Court  at  Camp  Scott  on  December  30, 
and  the  grand  jury  of  that  court  found  indictments  for  treason, 
resting  on  Young's  proclamation  and  Wells's  instructions,  against 
Young,  Kimball,  Wells,  Taylor,  Grant,  Locksmith,  Rockwell, 
Hickman,  and  many  others,  but  of  course  no  arrests  were  made. 

Meanwhile,  at  Washington,  preparations  were  making  to  sus- 
tain the  federal  authority  in  Utah  as  soon  as  spring  opened.1  Con- 
gress made  an  appropriation,  and  authorized  the  enlistment  of  two 
regiments  of  volunteers ;  three  thousand  regular  troops  and  two 
batteries  were  ordered  to  the  territory,  and  General  Scott  was  di- 
rected to  sail  for  the  Pacific  coast  with  large  powers.  But  Gen- 
eral Scott  did  not  sail,  the  army  contracts  created  a  scandal,2  and 
out  of  all  this  preparation  for  active  hostilities  came  peace  with- 
out the  firing  of  a  shot ;  out  of  all  this  open  defiance  and  vilifi- 
cation of  the  federal  administration  by  the  Mormon  church  came 
abject  surrender  by  the  administration  itself. 

1  For  the  correspondence  concerning  the  camp  during  the  winter  of  1858,  see  Sen. 
Doc,  2d  Session,  35th  Congress,  Vol.  II. 

2  Colonel  Albert  G.  Brown,  Jr.,  in  his  account  of  the  Utah  Expedition  in  the  Atlantic 
Monthly  for  April,  1859,  said :  "  To  the  shame  of  the  administration  these  gigantic  con- 
tracts, involving  an  amount  of  more  than  $6,000,000,  were  distributed  with  a  view  to 
influence  votes  in  the  House  of  Representatives  upon  the  Lecompton  Bill.  Some  of  the 
lesser  ones,  such  as  those  for  furnishing  mules,  dragoon  horses,  and  forage,  were  granted 
arbitrarily  to  relatives  or  friends  of  members  who  were  wavering  upon  that  question. 
The  principal  contract,  that  for  the  transportation  of  all  the  supplies,  involving  for  the 
year  1858  the  amount  of  $4,500,000,  was  granted,  without  advertisement  or  subdivision, 
to  a  firm  in  Western  Missouri,  whose  members  had  distinguished  themselves  in  the 
effort  to  make  Kansas  a  slave  state,  and  now  contributed  liberally  to  defray  the  election 
expenses  of  the  Democratic  party." 


CHAPTER   XIV 
COLONEL  KANE'S   MISSION 

When  Major  Van  Vliet  returned  from  Utah  to  Washington 
with  Young's  defiant  ultimatum,  he  was  accompanied  by  J.  M. 
Bernhisel,  the  territorial  Delegate  to  Congress,  who  was  allowed 
to  retain  his  seat  during  the  entire  "  war,"  a  motion  for  his  ex- 
pulsion, introduced  soon  after  Congress  met,  being  referred  to  a 
committee  which  never  reported  on  it,  the  debate  that  arose  only 
giving  further  proof  of  the  ignorance  of  the  lawmakers  about 
Mormon  history,  Mormon  government,  and  Mormon  ambition. 

In  Washington  Bernhisel  was  soon  in  conference  with  Colonel 
T.  L.  Kane,  that  efficient  ally  of  the  Mormons,  who  had  succeeded 
so  well  in  deceiving  President  Fillmore.  In  his  characteristically 
wily  manner,  Kane  proposed  himself  to  the  President  as  a  mediator 
between  the  federal  authorities  and  the  Mormon  leaders.1  At  that 
early  date  Buchanan  was  not  so  ready  for  a  compromise  as  he 
soon  became,  and  the  Cabinet  did  not  entertain  Kane's  proposition 
with  any  enthusiasm.  But  Kane  secured  from  the  President  two 
letters,  dated  December  3.2  The  first  stated,  in  regard  to  Kane, 
"  You  furnish  the  strongest  evidence  of  your  desire  to  serve  the 
Mormons  by  undertaking  so  laborious  a  trip,"  and  that  "nothing 
but  pure  philanthropy,  and  a  strong  desire  to  serve  the  Mormon 
people,  could  have  dictated  a  course  so  much  at  war  with  your 

1  H.  H.  Bancroft  ("  History  of  Utah,"  p.  529)  accepts  the  ridiculous  Mormon  asser- 
tion that  Buchanan  was  compelled  to  change  his  policy  toward  the  Mormons  by  unfavor- 
able comments  "  throughout  the  United  States  and  throughout  Europe."  Stenhouse 
says  ("  Rocky  Mountain  Saints,"  p.  386)  :  "That  the  initiatory  steps  for  the  settlement 
of  the  Utah  difficulties  were  made  by  the  government,  as  is  so  constantly  repeated  by  the 
Saints,  is  not  true.  The  author,  at  the  time  of  Colonel  Kane's  departure  from  New  York 
for  Utah,  was  on  the  staff  of  the  New  York  Herald,  and  was  conversant  with  the  facts, 
and  confidentially  communicated  them  to  Frederick  Hudson,  Esq.,  the  distinguished 
manager  of  that  great  journal." 

2  Sen.  Doc,  2d  Session,  35th  Congress,  Vol.  II,  pp.  162-163. 

501 


502  THE   STORY    OF   THE   MORMONS 

private  interests."  If  Kane  presented  this  credential  to  Young 
on  his  arrival  in  Salt  Lake  City,  what  a  glorious  laugh  the  two 
conspirators  must  have  had  over  it !  The  President  went  on  to 
reiterate  the  views  set  forth  in  his  last  annual  message,  and  to  say : 
"  I  would  not  at  the  present  moment,  in  view  of  the  hostile  atti- 
tude they  have  assumed  against  the  United  States,  send  any  agent 
to  visit  them  on  behalf  of  the  government."  The  second  letter 
stated  that  Kane  visited  Utah  from  his  own  sense  of  duty,  and 
commended  him  to  all  officers  of  the  United  States  whom  he 
might  meet. 

Kane's  method  of  procedure  was,  throughout,  characteristic  of 
the  secret  agent  of  such  an  organization  as  the  Mormon  church. 
He  sailed  from  New  York  for  San  Francisco  the  first  week  in 
January,  1858,  under  the  name  of  Dr.  Osborn.  As  soon  as  he 
landed,  he  hurried  to  Southern  California,  and,  joining  the  Mor- 
mons who  had  been  called  in  from  San  Bernardino,  he  made  the 
trip  to  Utah  with  them,  arriving  in  Salt  Lake  City  in  February. 
On  the  evening  of  the  day  of  his  arrival  he  met  the  Presidency  and 
the  Twelve,  and  began  an  address  to  them  as  follows :  "  I  come  as 
ambassador  from  the  Chief  Executive  of  our  nation,  and  am  pre- 
pared and  duly  authorized  to  lay  before  you,  most  fully  and  defi- 
nitely, the  feelings  and  views  of  the  citizens  of  our  common  country 
and  of  the  Executive  toward  you,  relative  to  the  present  position 
of  this  territory,  and  relative  to  the  army  of  the  United  States 
now  upon  your  borders."  This  is  the  report  of  Kane's  words 
made  by  Tullidge  in  his  "Life  of  Brigham  Young."  How  the 
statement  agrees  with  Kane's  letters  from  the  President  is  appar- 
ent on  its  face.  The  only  explanation  in  Kane's  favor  is  that  he 
had  secret  instructions  which  contradicted  those  that  were  written 
and  published.  Kane  told  the  church  officers  that  he  wished  to 
"  enlist  their  sympathies  for  the  poor  soldiers  who  are  now  suffer- 
ing in  the  cold  and  snow  of  the  mountains  !  "  An  interview  of  half 
an  hour  with  Young  followed  —  too  private  in  its  character  to  be 
participated  in  even  by  the  other  heads  of  the  church.  An  in- 
formal discussion  ensued,  the  following  extracts  from  which,  on 
Mormon  authority,  illustrate  Kane's  sympathies  and  purpose  :  — 

"  Did  Dr.  Bernhisel  take  his  seat?  " 

Kane  —  "  Yes.  He  was  opposed  by  the  Arkansas  member  and  a  few  others, 
but  they  were  treated  as  fools  by  more  sagacious  members ;  for,  if  the  Delegate 


COLONEL   KANE'S   MISSION  503 

had  been  refused  his  seat,  it  would  have  been  tantamount  to  a  declaration  of 
warP 

"I  suppose  they  [the  Cabinet]  are  united  in  putting  down  Utah?  " 

Kane  — "I  think  not."1 

Kane  was  placed  as  a  guest,  still  incognito,  in  the  house  of  an 
elder,  and,  after  a  few  days'  rest,  he  set  out  for  Camp  Scott.  His 
course  on  arriving  there,  on  March  10,  was  again  characteristic  of 
the  crafty  emissary.  Not  even  recognizing  the  presence  of  the 
military  so  far  as  to  reply  to  a  sentry's  challenge,  the  latter  fired 
on  him,  and  he  in  turn  broke  his  own  weapon  over  the  sentry's 
head.  When  seized,  he  asked  to  be  taken  to  Governor  Cumming, 
not  to  General  Johnston.2  "The  compromise,"  explains  Tullidge, 
"which  Buchanan  had  to  effect  with  the  utmost  delicacy,  could 
only  be  through  the  new  governor,  and  that,  too,  by  his  heading 
off  the  army  sent  to  occupy  Utah."  A  fancied  insult  from  General 
Johnston  due  to  an  orderly's  mistake  led  Kane  to  challenge  the 
general  to  a  duel ;  but  a  meeting  was  prevented  by  an  order  from 
Judge  Eckles  to  the  marshal  to  arrest  all  concerned  if  his  com- 
mand to  the  contrary  was  not  obeyed.  "  Governor  Cumming," 
continued  Tullidge,  "  could  do  nothing  less  than  espouse  the  cause 
of  the  '  ambassador '  who  was  there  in  the  execution  of  a  mission 
intrusted  to  him  by  the  President  of  the  United  States."  3 

Kane  did  not  make  any  mistake  in  his  selection  of  the  person 
to  approach  in  camp.  Judged  by  the  results,  and  by  his  admissions 
in  after  years,  the  most  charitable  explanation  of  Cumming's  course 
is  that  he  was  hoodwinked  from  the  beginning  by  such  masters  in  the 
art  of  deception  as  Kane  and  Young.  A  woman  in  Salt  Lake  City, 
writing  to  her  sons  in  the  East  at  the  time,  described  the  governor 
as  in  "  appearance  a  very  social,  good-natured  looking  gentleman,  a 
good  specimen  of  an  old  country  aristocrat,  at  ease  in  himself  and 

1  Tullidge's  "  History  of  Salt  Lake  City,"  p.  203. 

2  Colonel  Johnston  was  made  a  brigadier  general  that  winter. 

8  Kane  brought  an  impudent  letter  from  Young,  saying  that  he  had  learned  that  the 
United  States  troops  were  very  destitute  of  provisions,  and  offering  to  send  them  beef 
cattle  and  flour.  General  Johnston  replied  to  Kane  that  he  had  an  abundance  of  pro- 
visions, and  that,  no  matter  what  might  be  the  needs  of  his  army,  he  "  would  neither  ask 
nor  receive  from  President  Young  and  his  confederates  any  supplies  while  they  contin- 
ued to  be  enemies  of  the  government."  Kane  replied  to  this  the  next  day,  expressing  a 
fear  that  "  it  must  greatly  prejudice  the  public  interest  to  refuse  Mr.  Young's  proposal 
in  such  a  manner,"  and  begging  the  general  to  reconsider  the  matter.  No  further  notice 
seems  to  have  been  taken  of  the  offer. 


504  THE   STORY    OF   THE    MORMONS 

at  peace  with  all  the  world."  *  Such  a  man,  whom  the  acts  and 
proclamations  and  letters  of  Young  did  not  incite  to  indignation, 
was  in  a  very  suitable  frame  of  mind  to  be  cajoled  into  adopting  a 
policy  which  would  give  him  the  credit  of  bringing  about  peace, 
and  at  the  same  time  place  him  at  the  head  of  the  territorial 
affairs. 

In  looking  into  the  causes  of  what  was,  from  this  time,  a  back- 
ing down  by  both  parties  to  this  controversy,  we  find  at  Washing- 
ton that  lack  of  an  aggressive  defence  of  the  national  interests 
confided  to  him  by  his  office  which  became  so  much  more  evident 
in  President  Buchanan  a  few  years  later.  Defied  and  reviled  per- 
sonally by  Young  in  the  latter's  official  communications,  there  was 
added  reason  to  those  expressed  in  the  President's  first  message 
why  this  first  rebellion,  as  he  called  it,  "  should  be  put  down  in 
such  a  manner  that  it  shall  be  the  last."  But  a  wider  question 
was  looming  up  in  Kansas,  one  in  which  the  whole  nation  recog- 
nized a  vital  interest ;  a  bigger  struggle  attracted  the  attention  of 
the  leading  members  of  the  Cabinet.  The  Lecompton  Constitu- 
tion was  a  matter  of  vastly  more  interest  to  every  politician  than 
the  government  of  the  sandy  valley  which  the  Mormons  occupied 
in  distant  Utah. 

On  the  Mormon  side,  defiant  as  Young  was,  and  sincere  as  was 
his  declaration  that  he  would  leave  the  valley  a  desert  before  the 
advance  of  a  hostile  force,  his  way  was  not  wholly  clear.  His  Legion 
could  not  successfully  oppose  disciplined  troops,  and  he  knew  it. 
The  conviction  of  himself  and  his  associates  on  the  indictments  for 
treason  could  be  prevented  before  an  unbiassed  non-Mormon  jury 
only  by  flight.  Abjectly  as  his  people  obeyed  him,  —  so  abjectly 
that  they  gave  up  all  their  gold  and  silver  to  him  that  winter  in 
exchange  for  bank  notes  issued  by  a  company  of  which  he  was 
president,  —  the  necessity  of  a  reiteration  of  the  determination  to 
rule  by  the  plummet  showed  that  rebellion  was  at  least  a  possi- 
bility.2    That  Young  realized  his  personal   peril  was  shown  by 

1  New  York  Herald,  July  2,  1858.  For  personal  recollections  of  Cumming,  see 
Perry's  "  Reminiscences  of  Public  Men,"  p.  290.  What  is  said  by  Governor  Perry  of 
Cumming's  Utah  career  is  valueless. 

2  A  long  Utah  letter  to  the  New  York  Herald  (which  had  been  generally  pro-Mor- 
mon in  tone)  dated  Camp  Scott,  May  22,  1858,  contained  the  following:  "  Some  of  the 
deceived  followers  of  the  latest  false  Prophet  arrived  at  this  post  in  a  most  deplorable 
condition.     One  mater  familias  had  crossed  the  mountains  during  very  severe  weather 


COLONEL   KANE'S   MISSION  505 

some  "instructions  and  remarks"  made  by  him  in  the  Tabernacle 
just  after  Kane  set  out  for  Fort  Bridger,  and  privately  printed 
for  the  use  of  his  fellow-leaders.  He  expressed  the  opinion  that 
if  Joseph  Smith  had  "followed  the  revelations  in  him"  (meaning 
the  warnings  of  danger),  he  would  have  been  among  them  still. 
"  I  do  not  know  precisely,"  said  Young,  "  in  what  manner  the  Lord 
will  lead  me,  but  were  I  thrown  into  the  situation  Joseph  was,  I 
would  leave  the  people  and  go  into  the  wilderness,  and  let  them  do 
the  best  they  could.  .  .  .  We  are  in  duty  bound  to  preserve  life  — 
to  preserve  ourselves  on  earth  —  consequently  we  must  use  policy, 
and  follow  in  the  counsel  given  us."  He  pointed  out  the  sure 
destruction  that  awaited  them  if  they  opened  fire  on  the  soldiers, 
and  declared  that  he  was  going  to  a  desert  region  in  the  territory 
which  he  had  tried  to  have  explored  —  "a  desert  region  that  no 
man  knows  anything  about,"  with  "  places  here  and  there  in  it 
where  a  few  families  could  live,"  and  the  entire  extent  of  which 
would  provide  homes  for  five  hundred  thousand  people,  if  scattered 
about.  In  these  circumstances  "  a  way  out  "  that  would  free  the 
federal  administration  from  an  unpleasant  complication,  and  leave 
Young  still  in  practical  control  in  Utah,  was  not  an  unpleasant 
prospect  for  either  side. 

Kane  having  won  Governor  Cumming  to  his  view  of  the  situa- 
tion, and  having  created  ill  feeling  between  the  governor  and  the 
chief  military  commander,  the  way  was  open  for  the  next  step. 
The  plan  was  to  have  Governor  Cumming  enter  Salt  Lake  Valley 
without  any  federal  troops,  and  proceed  to  Salt  Lake  City  under  a 

in  almost  a  state  of  nudity.  Her  dress  consisted  of  a  part  of  a  single  skirt,  part  of  a 
man's  shirt,  and  a  portion  of  a  jacket.  Thus  habited,  without  a  shoe  or  a  thread  more, 
she  had  walked  157  miles  in  snow,  the  greater  part  of  the  way  up  to  her  knees,  and  car- 
ried in  her  arms  a  sucking  babe  less  than  six  weeks  old.  The  soldiers  pulled  off  their 
clothes  and  gave  them  to  the  unfortunate  woman.  The  absconding  Saints  who  arrive 
here  tell  a  great  many  stories  about  the  condition  and  feeling  of  their  brethren  who  still 
remain  in  the  land  of  promise.  .  .  .  Thousands  and  thousands  of  persons,  both  men 
and  women,  are  represented  to  be  exceedingly  desirous  of  not  going  South  with  the 
church,  but  are  compelled  to  by  fear  of  death  or  otherwise." 

Governor  Cumming,  in  his  report  to  Secretary  Cass  on  the  situation  as  he  found  it 
when  he  entered  Salt  Lake  City,  said  that,  learning  that  a  number  of  persons  desirous  of 
leaving  the  territory  "  considered  themselves  to  be  unlawfully  restrained  of  their  liberty," 
he  decided,  even  at  the  risk  of  offending  the  Mormons,  to  give  public  notice  of  his  readi- 
ness to  assist  such  persons.  In  consequence,  56  men,  38  women,  and  71  children  sought 
his  protection  in  order  to  proceed  to  the  States.  "  The  large  majority  of  these  people," 
he  explained,  "  are  of  English  birth,  and  state  that  they  leave  the  congregation  from  a 
desire  to  improve  their  circumstances  and  realize  elsewhere  more  money  for  their  labor." 


506  THE    STORY    OF   THE   MORMONS 

Mormon  escort  of  honor,  which  was  to  meet  him  when  he  came 
within  a  certain  distance  of  that  city.  This  he  consented  to  do. 
Kane  stayed  in  "Camp  Eckles  "  until  April,  making  one  visit  to 
the  outskirts  to  hold  a  secret  conference  with  the  Mormons,  and, 
doubtless,  to  arrange  the  details  of  the  trip. 

On  April  3  Governor  dimming  informed  General  Johnston  of 
his  decision,  and  he  set  out  two  days  later.  General  Johnston's 
view  of  the  policy  to  be  pursued  toward  the  Mormons  was 
expressed  in  a  report  to  army  headquarters,  dated  January  20:  — 

"  Knowing  how  repugnant  it  would  be  to  the  policy  or  interest  of  the  gov- 
ernment to  do  any  act  that  would  force  these  people  into  unpleasant  relations 
with  the  federal  government,  I  have,  in  conformity  with  the  views  also  of  the  com- 
manding general,  on  all  proper  occasions  manifested  in  my  intercourse  with  them 
a  spirit  of  conciliation.  But  I  do  not  believe  that  such  consideration  of  them 
would  be  properly  appreciated  now,  or  rather  would  be  wrongly  interpreted;  and, 
in  view  of  the  treasonable  temper  and  feeling  now  pervading  the  leaders  and  a 
greater  portion  of  the  Mormons,  I  think  that  neither  the  honor  nor  the  dignity 
of  the  government  will  allow  of  the  slightest  concession  being  made  to  them." 

Judge  Eckles  did  not  conceal  his  determination  not  to  enter 
Salt  Lake  City  until  the  flag  of  his  country  was  waving  there, 
holding  it  a  shame  that  men  should  be  detained  there  in  subjection 
to  such  a  despot  as  Brigham  Young. 

Leaving  camp  accompanied  only  by  Colonel  Kane  and  two 
servants,  Governor  dimming  found  his  Mormon  guard  awaiting 
him  a  few  miles  distant.  His  own  account  of  the  trip  and  of  his 
acts  during  the  next  three  weeks  of  his  stay  in  Mormondom  may 
be  found  in  a  letter  to  General  Johnston  and  a  report  to  Secretary 
of  State  Cass.1  As  Echo  Canon  was  supposed  to  be  thoroughly 
fortified,  and  there  was  not  positive  assurance  that  a  conflict  might 
not  yet  take  place,  the  governor  was  conducted  through  it  by 
night.  He  says  that  he  was  "agreeably  surprised"  by  the  illumi- 
nations in  his  honor.  Very  probably  he  so  accepted  them,  but  the 
fires  lighted  along  the  sides  and  top  of  the  canon  were  really 
intended  to  appear  to  him  as  the  camp-fires  of  a  big  Mormon 
army.  This  deception  was  further  kept  up  by  the  appearance  of 
challenging  parties  at  every  turn,  who  demanded  the  password 
of  the  escort,  and  who,  while  the  governor  was  detained,  would 
hasten  forward  to  a  new  station  and  go  through  the  form  of  chal- 

1  For  text,  see  Tullidge's  "  History  of  Salt  Lake  City,"  pp.  20S-212. 


COLONEL    KANE'S   MISSION  507 

lenging  again.  Once  he  was  made  the  object  of  an  apparent 
attack,  from  which  he  was  rescued  by  the  timely  arrival  of  officers 
of  authority.1 

The  trip  to  Salt  Lake  City  occupied  a  week,  and  on  the  12th 
the  governor  entered  the  Mormon  metropolis,  escorted  by  the  city 
officers  and  other  persons  of  distinction  in  the  community,  and 
was  assigned  as  a  guest  to  W.  C.  Staines,  an  influential  Mormon 
elder.  There  Young  immediately  called  on  him,  and  was  received 
with  friendly  consideration.  Asked  by  his  host,  when  the  head 
of  the  church  took  his  leave,  if  Young  appeared  to  be  a  tyrant, 
Governor  Cumming  replied :  "  No,  sir.  No  tyrant  ever  had  a  head 
on  his  shoulders  like  Mr.  Young.  He  is  naturally  a  good  man. 
I  doubt  whether  many  of  your  people  sufficiently  appreciate  him 
as  a  leader."  2  This  was  the  judgment  of  a  federal  officer  after  a 
few  moments'  conversation  with  the  reviler  of  the  government  — 
and  a  month's  coaching  by  Colonel  Kane. 

Three  days  later,  Governor  Cumming  officially  notified  General 
Johnston  of  his  arrival,  and  stated  that  he  was  everywhere  recog- 
nized as  governor,  and  "  universally  greeted  with  such  respectful 
attentions  "  as  were  due  to  his  office.  There  was  no  mention  of 
any  advance  of  the  troops,  nor  any  censure  of  Mormon  offenders, 
but  the  general  was  instructed  to  use  his  forces  to  recover  stock 
alleged  to  have  been  stolen  from  the  Mormons  by  Indians,  and  to 
punish  the  latter,  and  he  was  informed  that  Indian  Agent  Hurt 
(who  had  so  recently  escaped  from  Mormon  clutches)  was  charged 
by  W.  H.  Hooper,  the  Mormon  who  had  acted  as  secretary  of 
state  during  recent  months,  with  having  incited  Indians  to  hos- 
tility, and  should  be  investigated !  Verily,  Colonel  Kane's  work 
was  thoroughly  performed.  General  Johnston  replied,  expressing 
gratification  at  the  governor's  reception,  requesting  to  be  informed 
when  the  Mormon  force  would  be  withdrawn  from  the  route  to 
Salt  Lake  City,  and  saying  that  he  had  inquired  into  Dr.  Hurt's 
case,  and  had  satisfied  himself  "  that  he  has  faithfully  discharged 
his  duty  as  agent,  and  that  he  has  given  none  but  good  advice  to 
the  Indians." 

1  "  In  course  of  time  Cumming  discovered  how  the  Mormon  leaders  had  imposed 
upon  him  and  amused  themselves  with  his  credulity,  and  to  the  last  hour  that  he  was  in 
the  Territory  he  felt  annoyed  at  having  been  so  absurdly  deceived,  and  held  Brigham 
responsible  for  the  mortifying  joke."  —  "  Rocky  Mountain  Saints,"  p.  390. 

2  Tullidge's  "  History  of  Salt  Lake  City,"  p.  206. 


508  THE    STORY    OF   THE    MORMONS 

On  the  Sunday  after  his  arrival  Young  introduced  Governor 
Cumming  to  the  people  in  the  Tabernacle,  and  then  a  remarkable 
scene  ensued.  Stenhouse  says  that  the  proceedings  were  all  arranged 
in  advance.  Cumming  was  acting  the  part  of  the  vigilant  defender 
of  the  laws,  and  at  the  same  time  as  conciliator,  doing  what  his 
authority  would  permit  to  keep  the  Mormon  leaders  free  from  the 
presence  of  troops  and  from  the  jurisdiction  of  federal  judges. 
But  he  was  not  all-powerful  in  this  respect.  General  Johnston 
had  orders  that  would  allow  him  to  dispose  of  his  forces  without 
obedience  to  the  governor,  and  the  governor  could  not  quash  the 
indictments  found  by  Judge  Eckles's  grand  jury.  Young's  knowl- 
edge of  this  made  him  cautious  in  his  reliance  on  Governor  Cum- 
ming. Then,  too,  Young  had  his  own  people  to  deal  with,  and 
he  would  lose  caste  with  them  if  he  made  a  surrender  which  left 
Mormondom  practically  in  federal  control. 

When  Governor  Cumming  was  introduced  to  the  congregation 
of  nearly  four  thousand  people  he  made  a  very  conciliatory  address, 
in  which,  however,  according  to  his  report  to  Secretary  Cass,1  he  let 
them  know  that  he  had  come  to  vindicate  the  national  sovereignty, 
"  and  to  exact  an  unconditional  submission  on  their  part  to  the  dic- 
tates of  the  law  " ;  but  informed  them  that  they  were  entitled  to 
trial  by  their  peers,  —  intending  to  mean  Mormon  peers,  —  that  he 
had  no  intention  of  stationing  the  army  near  their  settlements,  or 
of  using  a  military  posse  until  other  means  of  arrest  had  failed. 
After  this  practical  surrender  of  authority,  the  governor  called  for 
expressions  of  opinion  from  the  audience,  and  he  got  them.  That 
audience  had  been  nurtured  for  years  on  the  oratory  of  Young  and 
Kimball  and  Grant,  and  had  seen  Judge  Brocchus  vilified  by  the 
head  of  the  church  in  the  same  building  ;  and  the  responses  to  Gov- 
ernor Cumming's  invitation  were  of  a  kind  to  make  an  Eastern 
Gentile  quail,  especially  one  like  the  innocent  Cumming,  who 
thought  them  "  a  people  who  habitually  exercised  great  self-con- 
trol." One  speaker  went  into  a  review  of  Mormon  wrongs  since 
the  tarring  of  the  prophet  in  Ohio,  holding  the  federal  govern- 
ment responsible,  and  naming  as  the  crowning  outrage  the  sending 
of  a  Missourian  to  govern  them.  This  was  too  much  for  Cumming, 
and  he  called  out,  "  I  am  a  Georgian,  sir,  a  Georgian."  The  con- 
gregation gave  the  governor  the  lie  to  his  face,  telling  him  that 

1  Ex.  Doc.  No.  67,  1st  Session,  35th  Congress. 


COLONEL   KANE'S   MISSION  509 

they  would  not  believe  that  he  was  their  friend  until  he  sent  the 
soldiers  back.  "  It  was  a  perfect  bedlam,"  says  an  eye-witness, 
"  and  gross  personal  remarks  were  made.  One  man  said,  '  You're 
nothing  but  an  office  seeker.'  The  governor  replied  that  he  ob- 
tained his  appointment  honorably  and  had  not  solicited  it."  1  If 
all  this  was  a  piece  of  acting  arranged  by  Young  to  show  his  flock 
that  he  was  making  no  abject  surrender,  it  was  well  done.2 

Young's  remarks  on  March  21  had  been  having  their  effect 
while  Cumming  was  negotiating,  and  an  exodus  from  the  northern 
settlements  was  under  way  which  only  needed  to  be  augmented  by 
a  movement  from  the  valley  to  make  good  Young's  declaration  that 
they  would  leave  their  part  of  the  territory  a  desert.  No  official 
order  for  this  movement  had  been  published,  but  whatever  direc- 
tion was  given  was  sufficient.  Peace  Commissioners  Powell  and 
McCullough,  in  a  report  to  the  Secretary  of  War  dated  July  3, 
1858,  said  on  this  subject:  "We  were  informed  by  various  (discon- 
tented) Mormons,  who  lived  in  the  settlements  north  of  Provo,  that 
they  had  been  forced  to  leave  their  homes  and  go  to  the  southern 
part  of  the  Territory.  .  .  .  We  were  also  informed  that  at  least 
one-third  of  the  persons  who  had  removed  from  their  homes  were 
compelled  to  do  so.  We  were  told  that  many  were  dissatisfied  with 
the  Mormon  church,  and  would  leave  it  whenever  they  could  with 
safety  to  themselves.  We  are  of  opinion  that  the  leaders  of  the 
Mormon  church  congregated  the  people  in  order  to  exercise  more 
immediate  control  over  them."  Not  only  were  houses  deserted, 
but  growing  crops  were  left  and  heavier  household  articles  aban- 
doned, and  the  roads  leading  to  the  south  and  through  Salt 
Lake  City  were  crowded  day  by  day  with  loaded  wagons,  their 
owners  —  even  the  women,  often  shoeless  —  trudging  along  and 
driving  their  animals  before  them.  These  refugees  were,  a  little 
later,  joined  by  Young  and  most  of  his  associates,  and  by  a  large 
part  of  the  inhabitants  of  Salt  Lake  City  itself. 

It  was  estimated  by  the  army  officers  at  the  time  that  25,000 

1  Coverdale's  statement  in  Camp  Scott  letter,  June  4,  1858,  to  New  York  Herald. 

2  "  Brigham  was  seated  beside  the  governor  on  the  platform,  and  tried  to  control 
the  unruly  spirits.  Governor  Cumming  may  for  the  moment  have  been  deceived  by  this 
apparent  division  among  the  Mormons,  but  three  years  later  he  told  the  author  that  it 
was  all  of  a  piece  with  the  incidents  of  his  passage  through  Echo  Canon.  In  his  char- 
acteristic brusque  way  he  said:  'It  was  all  humbug,  sir,  all  humbug;  but  never  mind; 
it  is  all  over  now.  If  it  did  them  good,  it  did  not  hurt  me.'"  —  "Rocky  Mountain 
Saints,"  p.  393. 


510  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

of  a  total  population  of  45,000  in  the  Territory,  took  part  in  this 
movement.  When  they  abandoned  their  houses  they  left  them 
tinder  boxes  which  only  needed  the  word  of  command,  when  the 
troops  advanced,  to  begin  a  general  conflagration.  By  June  1  the 
refugees  were  collected  on  the  western  shore  of  Utah  Lake,  fifty 
miles  south  of  Salt  Lake  City.  What  a  picture  of  discomfort  and 
positive  suffering  this  settlement  presented  can  be  partly  imagined. 
The  town  of  Provo  near  by  could  accommodate  but  a  few  of  the 
new-comers,  and  for  dwellings  the  rest  had  recourse  to  covered 
wagons,  dugouts,  cabins  of  logs,  and  shanties  of  boards  —  anything 
that  offered  any  protection.  There  was  a  lack  of  food,  and  it  was 
the  old  life  of  the  plains  again,  without  the  daily  variety  presented 
when  the  trains  were  moving. 

In  his  report  to  Secretary  Cass,  dated  May  2,  Governor  Cum- 
ming,  after  describing  this  exodus  as  a  matter  of  great  concern, 
said :  — 

"I  shall  follow  these  people  and  try  to  rally  them.  Our  military  force  could 
overwhelm  most  of  these  poor  people,  involving  men,  women,  and  children  in  a 
common  fate ;  but  there  are  among  the  Mormons  many  brave  men  accustomed 
to  arms  and  horses,  men  who  could  fight  desperately  as  guerillas ;  and,  if  the 
settlements  are  destroyed,  will  subject  the  country  to  an  expensive  and  protracted 
war,  without  any  compensating  results.  They  will,  I  am  sure,  submit  to  '  trial  by 
their  peers,1  but  they  will  not  brook  the  idea  of  trial  by  'juries '  composed  of  '  team- 
sters and  followers  of  the  camp,1  nor  any  army  encamped  in  their  cities  or  dense 
settlements." 

What  kind  of  justice  their  idea  of  "trial  by  their  peers"  meant 
was  disclosed  in  the  judicial  history  of  the  next  few  years. 

This  report,  which  also  recited  the  insults  the  governor  had 
received  in  the  Tabernacle,  was  sent  to  Congress  on  June  10  by 
President  Buchanan,  with  a  special  message,  setting  forth  that  he 
had  reason  to  believe  that  "  our  difficulties  with  the  territory  have 
terminated,  and  the  reign  of  the  constitution  and  laws  been  restored," 
and  saying  that  there  was  no  longer  any  use  of  calling  out  the 
authorized  regiments  of  volunteers. 


CHAPTER   XV 

THE   PEACE   COMMISSION 

Governor  Cumming's  report  of  May  2  did  not  reach  Washing- 
ton until  June  9,  but  the  President's  volte-face  had  begun  before  that 
date,  and  when  the  situation  in  Utah  was  precisely  as  it  was  when 
he  had  assured  Colonel  Kane  that  he  would  send  no  agent  to  the 
Mormons  while  they  continued  their  defiant  attitude.  Under  date 
of  April  6  he  issued  a  proclamation,  in  which  he  recited  the  out- 
rages on  the  federal  officers  in  Utah,  the  warlike  attitude  and  acts 
of  the  Mormon  force,  which,  he  pointed  out,  constituted  rebellion 
and  treason ;  declared  that  it  was  a  grave  mistake  to  suppose  that 
the  government  would  fail  to  bring  them  into  submission ;  stated 
that  the  land  occupied  by  the  Mormons  belonged  to  the  United 
States  ;  and  disavowed  any  intention  to  interfere  with  their  religion ; 
and  then,  to  save  bloodshed  and  avoid  indiscriminate  punishment 
where  all  were  not  equally  guilty,  he  offered  "  a  free  and  full  par- 
don to  all  who  will  submit  themselves  to  the  just  authority  of  the 
federal  government." 

This  proclamation  was  intrusted  to  two  peace  commissioners, 
L.  W.  Powell  of  Kentucky  and  Major  Ben.  McCullough  of  Texas. 
Powell  had  been  governor  of  his  state,  and  was  then  United  States 
senator-elect.  McCullough  had  seen  service  in  Texas  before  the 
war  with  Mexico,  and  been  a  daring  scout  under  Scott  in  the  latter 
war.  He  was  killed  at  the  battle  of  Pea  Ridge,  Arkansas,  in  1862, 
in  command  of  a  Confederate  corps. 

These  commissioners  were  instructed  by  the  Secretary  of  War 
to  give  the  President's  proclamation  extensive  circulation  in  Utah. 
Without  entering  into  any  treaty  or  engagements  with  the  Mormons, 
they  were  to  "bring  those  misguided  people  to  their  senses"  by 
convincing  them  of  the  uselessness  of  resistance,  and  how  much 
submission  was  to  their  interest.  They  might,  in  so  doing,  place 
themselves  in  communication  with  the  Mormon  leaders,  and  assure 

5" 


512  THE    STORY    OF   THE    MORMONS 

them  that  the  movement  of  the  army  had  no  reference  to  their 
religious  tenets.  The  determination  was  expressed  to  see  that  the 
federal  officers  appointed  for  the  territory  were  received  and  in- 
stalled, and  that  the  laws  were  obeyed,  and  Colonel  Kane  was 
commended  to  them  as  likely  to  be  of  essential  service. 

The  commissioners  set  out  from  Fort  Leavenworth  on  April 
25,  travelling  in  ambulances,  their  party  consisting  of  themselves, 
five  soldiers,  five  armed  teamsters,  and  a  wagon  master.  They 
arrived  at  Camp  Scott  on  May  29,  the  reinforcements  for  the 
troops  following  them.  The  publication  of  the  President's  proc- 
lamation was  a  great  surprise  to  the  military.  "There  was  none 
of  the  bloodthirsty  excitement  in  the  camp  which  was  reported  in 
the  States  to  have  prevailed  there,"  says  Colonel  Brown,  "  but 
there  was  a  feeling  of  infinite  chagrin,  a  consciousness  that  the 
expedition  was  only  a  pawn  on  Mr.  Buchanan's  political  chess- 
board ;  and  reproaches  against  his  folly  were  as  frequent  as  they 
were  vehement."  x 

The  commissioners  were  not  long  in  discovering  the  untrust- 
worthy character  of  any  advices  they  might  receive  from  Governor 
Cumming.  In  their  report  of  June  1  to  the  Secretary  of  War, 
they  mentioned  his  opinion  that  almost  all  the  military  organiza- 
tions of  the  territory  had  been  disbanded,  adding,  "We  fear  that 
the  leaders  of  the  Mormon  people  have  not  given  the  governor 
correct  information  of  affairs  in  the  valley."  They  also  declared 
it  to  be  of  the  first  importance  that  the  army  should  advance  into 
the  valley  before  the  Mormons  could  burn  the  grass  or  crops,  and 
they  gave  General  Johnston  the  warmest  praise. 

The  commissioners  set  out  for  Salt  Lake  City  on  June  2, 
Governor  Cumming  who  had  returned  to  Camp  Scott  with  Colonel 
Kane  following  them.  On  reaching  the  city  they  found  that 
Young  and  the  other  leaders  were  with  the  refugees  at  Provo. 
A  committee  of  three  Mormons  expressed  to  the  commissioners 
the  wish  of  the  people  that  they  would  have  a  conference  with 
Young,  and  on  the  10th  Young,  Kimball,  Wells,  and  several  of  the 
Twelve  arrived,  and  a  meeting  was  arranged  for  the  following  day. 

There  are  two  accounts  of  the  ensuing  conferences,  the  official 
reports  of   the   commissioners,2  which   are   largely  statements  of 

1  Atlantic  Monthly,  April,  1859. 

2  Sen.  Doc,  2d  Session,  35th  Congress,  Vol.  II,  p.  167. 


THE   PEACE   COMMISSION  513 

results,  and  a  Mormon  report  in  the  journal  kept  by  Wilford 
Woodruff.1  At  the  first  conference,  the  commissioners  made  a 
statement  in  line  with  the  President's  proclamation  and  with  their 
instructions,  offering  pardon  on  submission,  and  declaring  the  pur- 
pose of  the  government  to  enforce  submission  by  the  employment 
of  the  whole  military  force  of  the  nation,  if  necessary.  Wood- 
ruff's "  reflection "  on  this  proposition  was  that  the  President 
found  that  Congress  would  not  sustain  him,  and  so  was  seeking 
a  way  of  retreat.  While  the  conference  was  in  session,  O.  P. 
Rockwell  entered  and  whispered  to  Young.  The  latter,  address- 
ing Governor  Cumming,  asked,  "  Are  you  aware  that  those  troops 
are  on  the  move  toward  the  city  ? "  The  compliant  governor  re- 
plied, "  It  cannot  be."  2     What  followed  Woodruff  thus  relates  :  — 

"'Is  Brother  Dunbar  present,1  enquired  Brigham. 
"'Yes,  sir,'  responded  some  one.     What  was  coming  now  ? 
" '  Brother  Dunbar,  sing  Zion.'     The  Scotch  songster  came  forward  and  sang 
the  soul-stirring  lines  by  C.  W.  Penrose."3 

Interpreted,  this  meant,  "  Stop  that  army  or  our  peace  confer- 
ence is  ended."     Woodruff  adds  :  — 

"After  the  meeting,  McCullough  and  Gov.  Cumming  took  a  stroll  together. 
'  What  will  you  do  with  such  a  people,'  asked  the  governor,  with  a  mixture  of  ad- 
miration and  concern.  'D n  them,  I  would  fight  them  if  I  had  my  way,'  an- 
swered McCullough. 

" '  Fight  them,  would  you  ?  You  might  fight  them,  but  you  would  never  whip 
them.     They  would  never  know  when  they  were  whipped.'" 

At  the  second  day's  conference  Brigham  Young  uttered  his 
final  defiance  and  then  surrendered.  Declaring  that  he  had  done 
nothing  for  which  he  desired  the  President's  forgiveness,  he  satis- 
fied the  pride  of  his  followers  with  such  declarations  as  these :  — 

"  I  can  take  a  few  of  the  boys  here,  and,  with  the  help  of  the  Lord,  can  whip 
the  whole  of  the  United  States.     Boys,  how  do  you  feel?     Are  you  afraid  of  the 

1  Quoted  in  Tullidge's  "  History  of  Salt  Lake  City,"  p.  214. 

2  Governor  Cumming  on  June  15  despatched  a  letter  to  General  Johnston  saying 
that  he  had  denied  the  report  of  the  advance  of  the  army,  and  that  the  general  was 
pledged  not  to  advance  until  he  had  received  communications  from  the  peace  commis- 
sioners and  the  governor.  The  general  replied  on  the  19th  that  he  did  say  he  would 
not  advance  until  he  heard  from  the  governor,  but  that  this  was  not  a  pledge;  that  his 
orders  from  the  President  were  to  occupy  the  territory;  that  his  supplies  had  arrived 
earlier  than  anticipated,  and  that  circumstances  required  an  advance  at  once. 

3  See  p.  498,  ante. 

2L 


514  THE   STORY   OF   THE  MORMONS 

United  States?     (Great  demonstration  among  the   brethren.)     No.     No.     We 
are  not  afraid  of  man,  nor  of  what  he  can  do." 

"  The  United  States  are  going  to  destruction  as  fast  as  they  can  go.  If  you 
do  not  believe  it,  gentlemen,  you  will  soon  see  it  to  your  sorrow.1' 

But  here  was  the  really  important  part  of  his  remarks  :  "  Now, 
let  me  say  to  you  peace  commissioners,  we  are  willing  those  troops 
should  come  into  our  country,  but  not  to  stay  in  our  city.  They 
may  pass  through  it,  if  needs  be,  but  must  not  quarter  less  than 
forty  miles  from  us." 

Impudent  as  was  this  declaration  to  the  representatives  of  the 
government,  it  marked  the  end  of  the  "  war."  The  commissioners 
at  once  notified  General  Johnston  that  the  Mormon  leaders  had 
agreed  not  to  resist  the  execution  of  the  laws  in  the  territory,  and 
to  consent  that  the  military  and  civil  officers  should  discharge 
their  duties.  They  suggested  that  the  general  issue  a  proclamation, 
assuring  the  people  that  the  army  would  not  trespass  on  the  rights 
or  property  of  peaceable  citizens,  and  this  the  general  did  at  once. 

The  Mormon  leaders,  being  relieved  of  the  danger  of  a  trial 
for  treason,  now  stood  in  dread  of  two  things,  the  quartering  of 
the  army  among  them,  and  a  vigorous  assault  on  the  practice  of 
polygamy.  Judge  Eckles's  District  Court  had  begun  its  spring 
term  at  Fort  Bridger  on  April  5,  and  the  judge  had  charged  the 
grand  jury  very  plainly  in  regard  to  plural  marriages.  On  this 
subject  he  said  :  — 

"  It  cannot  be  concealed,  gentlemen,  that  certain  domestic  arrangements 
exist  in  this  territory  destructive  of  the  peace,  good  order,  and  morals  of  society 
—  arrangements  at  variance  with  those  of  all  enlightened  and  Christian  commun- 
ities in  the  world ;  and,  sapping  as  they  do  the  very  foundation  of  all  virtue,  hon- 
esty, and  morality,  it  is  an  imperative  duty  falling  upon  you  as  grand  jurors 
diligently  to  inquire  into  this  evil  and  make  every  effort  to  check  its  growth.  .  .  . 
There  is  no  law  in  this  territory  punishing  polygamy,  but  there  is  one,  however, 
for  the  punishment  of  adultery ;  and  all  illegal  intercourse  between  the  sexes,  if 
either  party  have  a  husband  or  wife  living  at  the  time,  is  adulterous  and  punish- 
able by  indictment.  The  law  was  made  to  punish  the  lawless  and  disobedient, 
and  society  is  entitled  to  the  salutary  effects  of  its  execution." 

No  indictments  were  found  that  spring  for  this  offence,  but  the 
Mormons  stood  in  great  dread  of  continued  efforts  by  the  judge  to 
enforce  the  law  as  he  interpreted  it.  Of  the  nature  of  the  real 
terms  made  with  the  Mormons,  Colonel  Brown  says :  — 


THE   PEACE   COMMISSION  515 

"  No  assurances  were  given  by  the  commissioners  upon  either  of  these  sub- 
jects. They  limited  their  action  to  tendering  the  President's  pardon,  and  exhort- 
ing the  Mormons  to  accept  it.  Outside  the  conferences,  however,  without  the 
knowledge  of  the  commissioners,  assurances  were  given  on  both  these  subjects  by 
the  Governor  and  Superintendent  of  Indian  Affairs,  which  proved  satisfactory  to 
Brigham  Young.  The  exact  nature  of  their  pledges  will,  perhaps,  never  be  dis- 
closed ;  but  from  subsequent  confessions  volunteered  by  the  superintendent,  who 
appears  to  have  acted  as  the  tool  of  the  governor  through  the  whole  affair,  it 
seems  probable  that  they  promised  explicitly  to  exert  their  influence  to  quarter 
the  army  in  Cache  Valley,  nearly  one  hundred  miles  north  of  Salt  Lake  City,  and 
also  to  procure  the  removal  of  Judge  Eckles."  1 

Captain  Marcy  had  reached  Camp  Scott  on  June  8,  with  his 
herd  of  horses  and  mules,  and  Colonel  Hoffman  with  the  first 
division  of  the  supply  train  which  left  Fort  Laramie  on  March  18 ; 
on  the  10th  Captain  Hendrickson  arrived  with  the  remainder  of  the 
trains;  and  on  the  13th  the  long-expected  movement  from  Camp 
Scott  to  the  Mormon  city  began.  To  the  soldiers  who  had  spent 
the  winter  inactive,  except  as  regards  their  efforts  to  keep  them- 
selves from  freezing,  the  order  to  advance  was  a  welcome  one. 
Late  as  was  the  date,  there  had  been  a  snowfall  at  Fort  Bridger 
only  three  days  before,  and  the  streams  were  full  of  water.  The 
column  was  prepared  therefore  for  bridge-making  when  necessary. 
When  the  little  army  was  well  under  way  the  scene  in  the  valley 
through  which  ran  Black's  Fork  was  an  interesting  one.  The 
white  walls  of  Bridger's  Fort  formed  a  background,  with  the  rem- 
nants of  the  camp  in  the  shape  of  sod  chimneys,  tent  poles,  and  so 
forth  next  in  front,  and,  slowly  leaving  all  this,  the  moving  soldiers, 
the  long  wagon  trains,  the  artillery  carriages  and  caissons,  and  on 
either  flank  mounted  Indians  riding  here  and  there,  satisfying  their 
curiosity  with  this  first  sight  of  a  white  man's  army. 

The  news  that  the  Mormons  had  abandoned  their  idea  of 
resistance  reached  the  troops  the  second  day  after  they  had  started, 
and  they  had  nothing  more  exciting  to  interest  them  on  the  way 
than  the  scenery  and  the  Mormon  fortifications.  Salt  Lake  City 
was  reached  on  the  26th,  and  the  march  through  it  took  place  that 
day.  To  the  soldiers,  nothing  was  visible  to  indicate  any  abandon- 
ment of  the  hostile  attitude  of  the  Mormons,  much  less  any  wel- 

1  Atlantic  Monthly,  April,  1859.  Young  told  the  Mormons  at  Provo  on  June  27, 
1858  :  "  We  have  reason  to  believe  that  Colonel  Kane,  on  his  arrival  at  the  frontier,  tele- 
graphed to  Washington,  and  that  orders  were  immediately  sent  to  stop  the  march  of 
the  army  for  ten  days."  — Journal  of  Discourses,  Vol.  VII,  p.  57. 


516  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

come.  Their  leaders  had  returned  to  the  camp  at  Provo,  and  the 
only  civilians  in  the  city  were  a  few  hundred  who  had,  for  special 
reasons,  been  granted  permission  to  return.  The  only  woman  in 
the  whole  city  was  Mrs.  Cumming.  The  Mormons  had  been 
ordered  indoors  early  that  morning  by  the  guard  ;  every  flag  on  a 
public  building  had  been  taken  down ;  every  window  was  closed. 
The  regimental  bands  and  the  creaking  wagons  alone  disturbed  the 
utter  silence.  The  peace  commissioners  rode  with  General  John- 
ston, and  the  whole  force  encamped  on  the  river  Jordan,  just 
within  the  city  limits.  Two  days  later,  owing  to  a  lack  of  wood 
and  pasturage  there,  they  were  moved  about  fifteen  miles  westward, 
near  the  foot  of  the  mountains.  Disregarding  Young's  expressed 
wishes,  and  any  understanding  he  might  have  had  with  Governor 
Cumming,  General  Johnston  selected  Cedar  Valley  on  Lake  Utah 
for  one  of  the  three  posts  he  was  ordered  to  establish  in  the  terri- 
tory, and  there  his  camp  was  pitched  on  July  6. 

Governor  Cumming  prepared  a  proclamation  to  the  inhabitants 
of  the  territory,  announcing  that  all  persons  were  pardoned  who 
submitted  to  the  law,  and  that  peace  was  restored,  and  inviting  the 
refugees  to  return  to  their  homes.  The  governor  and  the  peace 
commissioners  made  a  trip  to  the  Mormon  camps,  and  addressed 
gatherings  at  Provo  and  Lehi.  The  governor  bustled  about 
everywhere,  assuring  every  one  that  all  the  federal  officers  would 
"  hold  sacred  the  amnesty  and  pardon  by  the  President    of  the 

United  States,  by  G d,  sir,  yes,"  and  receiving  from  Young  the 

sneering  reply,  "  We  know  all  about  it,  Governor."  On  July  4,  no 
northward  movement  of  the  people  having  begun,  Cumming  told 
Young  that  he  intended  to  publish  his  proclamation. 

"  Do  as  you  please,"  was  the  contemptuous  reply;  "to-morrow 
I  shall  get  upon  the  tongue  of  my  wagon,  and  tell  the  people  that 
/am  going  home,  and  they  can  do  as  they  please."  1 

Young  did  so,  and  that  day  the  backward  march  of  the  people 
began.     The  real  governor  was  the  head  of  the  church. 

1  Tullidge's  "  History  of  Salt  Lake  City,"  p.  226. 


CHAPTER  XVI 

THE  MOUNTAIN  MEADOWS  MASSACRE 

We  may  here  interrupt  the  narrative  of  events  subsequent  to 
the  restoration  of  peace  in  the  territory,  with  the  story  of  the  most 
horrible  massacre  of  white  people  by  religious  fanatics  of  their  own 
race  that  has  been  recorded  since  that  famous  St.  Bartholemew's 
night  in  Paris  —  the  story  of  the  Mountain  Meadows  Massacre. 
Committed  on  Friday,  September  n,  1857,  —  four  days  before  the 
date  of  Young's  proclamation  forbidding  the  United  States  troops 
to  enter  the  territory  —  it  was  a  considerable  time  before  more  than 
vague  rumors  of  the  crime  reached  the  Eastern  states.  No  inquest 
or  other  investigation  was  held  by  Mormon  authority,  no  person 
participating  in  the  slaughter  was  arrested  by  a  Mormon  officer ; 
and,  when  officers  of  the  federal  government  first  visited  the  scene, 
in  the  spring  of  1859,  all  that  remained  to  tell  the  tale  were  human 
skulls  and  other  bones  lying  where  the  wolves  and  coyotes  had  left 
them,  with  scraps  of  clothing  caught  here  and  there  upon  the  vines 
and  bushes.  Dr.  Charles  Brewer,  the  assistant  army  surgeon  who 
was  sent  with  a  detail  to  bury  the  remains  in  May,  1859,  says  in 
his  grewsome  report :  — 

"  I  reached  a  ravine  fifty  yards  from  the  road,  in  which  I  found  portions  of 
the  skeletons  of  many  bodies,  —  skulls,  bones,  and  matted  hair, — most  of  which, 
on  examination,  I  concluded  to  be  those  of  men.  Three  hundred  and  fifty  yards 
further  on  another  assembly  of  human  remains  was  found,  which,  by  all  appear- 
ance, had  been  left  to  decay  upon  the  surface  ;  skulls  and  bones,  most  of  which  I 
believed  to  be  those  of  women,  some  also  of  children,  probably  ranging  from  six 
to  twelve  years  of  age.  Here,  too,  were  found  masses  of  women's  hair,  children's 
bonnets,  such  as  are  generally  used  upon  the  plains,  and  pieces  of  lace,  muslin, 
calicoes,  and  other  materials.  Many  of  the  skulls  bore  marks  of  violence,  being 
pierced  with  bullet  holes,  or  shattered  by  heavy  blows,  or  cleft  with  some  sharp- 
edged  instrument.111 

1  Sen.  Doc.  No.  42,  1st  Session,  36th  Congress. 
517 


5 18  THE    STORY    OF   THE   MORMONS 

More  than  seventeen  years  passed  before  officers  of  the 
United  States  succeeded  in  securing  the  needed  evidence  against 
any  of  the  persons  responsible  for  these  wholesale  murders,  and  a 
jury  which  would  bring  in  a  verdict  of  guilty.  Then  a  single  Mor- 
mon paid  the  penalty  of  his  crime.  He  died  asserting  that  he  was 
the  one  victim  surrendered  by  the  Mormon  church  to  appease  the 
public  demand  for  justice.  The  closest  students  of  the  Mountain 
Meadows  Massacre  and  of  Brigham  Young's  rule  will  always  give 
the  most  credence  to  this  statement  of  John  D.  Lee.  Indeed,  to 
acquit  Young  of  responsibility  for  this  crime,  it  would  be  necessary 
to  prove  that  the  sermons  and  addresses  in  the  Journal  of  Dis- 
courses are  forgeries. 

In  the  summer  of  1857  a  party  was  made  up  in  Arkansas  to 
cross  the  plains  to  Southern  California  by  way  of  Utah,  under 
direction  of  a  Captain  Fancher.1  This  party  differed  from  most 
emigrant  parties  of  the  day  both  in  character  and  equipment.  It 
numbered  some  thirty  families,  —  about  140  individuals,  —  men, 
women,  and  children.  They  were  people  of  means,  several  of 
them  travelling  in  private  carriages,  and  their  equipment  included 
thirty  horses  and  mules,  and  about  six  hundred  head  of  cattle,  when 
they  arrived  in  Utah.  Most  of  them  seem  to  have  been  Metho- 
dists, and  they  had  a  preacher  of  that  denomination  with  them. 
Prayers  were  held  in  camp  every  night  and  morning,  and  they 
never  travelled  on  Sundays.  They  did  not  hurry  on,  as  the  gold- 
seekers  were  wont  to  do  in  those  days,  but  made  their  trip  one  of 
pleasure,  sparing  themselves  and  their  animals,  and  enjoying  the 
beauties  and  novelties  of  the  route.2 

1  Stenhouse  says  that  travelling  the  same  route,  and  encamping  near  the  Arkansans, 
was  a  company  from  Missouri  who  called  themselves  "  Missouri  Wildcats,"  and  who 
were  so  boisterous  that  the  Arkansans  were  warned  not  to  travel  with  them  to  Utah. 
Whitney  says  that  the  two  parties  travelled  several  days  apart  after  leaving  Salt  Lake 
City.  No  mention  of  a  separate  company  of  Missourians  appears  in  the  official  and 
court  reports  of  the  massacre. 

2  Jacob  Forney,  in  his  official  report,  says  that  he  made  the  most  careful  inquiry  re- 
garding the  conduct  of  the  emigrants  after  they  entered  the  territory,  and  could  testify 
"  that  the  company  conducted  themselves  with  propriety."  In  the  years  immediately 
following  the  massacre,  when  the  Mormons  were  trying  to  attribute  the  crime  to  Indians, 
much  was  said  about  the  party  having  poisoned  a  spring  and  caused  the  death  of  Indians 
and  their  cattle.  Forney  found  that  one  ox  did  die  near  their  camp,  but  that  its  death 
was  caused  by  a  poisonous  weed.  Whitney,  the  church  historian,  who  of  course  acquits 
the  church  of  any  responsibility  for  the  massacre,  draws  a  very  black  picture  of  the  emi- 
grants, saying,  for  instance,  that  at  Cedar  Creek  "  their  customary  proceeding  of  burning 
fences,  whipping  the  heads  off  chickens,  or  shooting  them  in  the  streets  or  private  door- 


THE   MOUNTAIN  MEADOWS    MASSACRE  519 

Every  emigrant  train  for  California  then  expected  to  restock 
in  Utah.  The  Mormons  had  profited  by  this  traffic,  and  such 
a  thing  as  non-intercourse  with  travellers  in  the  way  of  trade  was 
as  yet  unheard  of.  But  Young  was  now  defying  the  government, 
and  his  proclamation  of  September  15  had  declared  that  "  no  per- 
son shall  be  allowed  to  pass  or  repass  into  or  through  or  from  this 
territory  without  a  permit  from  the  proper  officer."  To  a  con- 
stituency made  up  so  largely  of  dishonest  members,  high  and  low, 
as  Young  himself  conceded  the  Mormon  body  politic  to  be,  the 
outfit  of  these  travellers  was  very  attractive.  There  was  a  motive, 
too,  in  inflicting  punishment  on  them,  merely  because  they  were 
Arkansans,  and  the  motive  was  this :  — 

Parley  P.  Pratt  was  sent  to  explore  a  southern  route  from  Utah 
to  California  in  1849.  He  reached  San  Francisco  from  Los 
Angeles  in  the  summer  of  185 1,  remaining  there  until  June,  1855. 
He  was  a  fanatical  defender  of  polygamy  after  its  open  proclama- 
tion, challenging  debate  on  the  subject  in  San  Francisco,  and  issu- 
ing circulars  calling  on  the  people  to  repent  as  "  the  Kingdom  of 
God  has  come  nigh  unto  you."  While  in  San  Francisco,  Pratt 
induced  the  wife  of  Hector  H.  McLean,  a  custom-house  official, 
the  mother  of  three  children,  to  accept  the  Mormon  faith  and  to 
elope  with  him  to  Utah  as  his  ninth  wife.  The  children  were  sent 
to  her  parents  in  Louisiana  by  their  father,  and  there  she  some- 
time later  obtained  them,  after  pretending  that  she  had  abandoned 
the  Mormon  belief.  When  McLean  learned  of  this  he  went  East, 
and  traced  his  wife  and  Pratt  to  Houston,  Texas,  and  thence  to 
Fort  Gibson,  near  Van  Buren,  Arkansas.  There  he  had  Pratt 
arrested,  but  there  seemed  to  be  no  law  under  which  he  could  be 
held.  As  soon  as  Pratt  was  released,  he  left  the  place  on  horse- 
back. McLean,  who  had  found  letters  from  Pratt  to  his  wife  at 
Fort  Gibson  which  increased  his  feeling  against  the  man,1  followed 
him  on  horseback  for  eight  miles,  and  then,  overtaking  him,  shot 
him  so  that  he  died  in  two  hours.2      It  was  in  accordance  with 

yards,  to  the  extreme  danger  of  the  inhabitants,  was  continued.  One  of  them,  a  bluster- 
ing fellow  riding  a  gray  horse,  flourished  his  pistol  in  the  face  of  the  wife  of  one  of  the 
citizens,  all  the  time  making  insulting  proposals  and  uttering  profane  threats."  —  "  His- 
tory of  Utah,"  Vol.  I,  p.  696. 

1  Van  Buren  Intelligencer,  May  15,  1857. 

2  See  the  story  in  the  New  York  Times  of  May  28,  1 85 7,  copied  from  the  St.  Louis 
Democrat  and  St.  Louis  Republican. 


520  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

Mormon  policy  to  hold  every  Arkansan  accountable  for  Pratt's 
death,  just  as  every  Missourian  was  hated  because  of  the  expulsion 
of  the  church  from  that  state. 

When  the  company  pitched  camp  on  the  river  Jordan  their 
food  supplies  were  nearly  exhausted,  and  their  draught  animals 
needed  rest  and  a  chance  to  recuperate.  They  knew  nothing  oi 
the  disturbed  relations  between  the  Mormons  and  the  government 
when  they  set  out,  and  they  were  astonished  now  to  be  told  that 
they  must  break  camp  and  move  on  southward.  But  they  obeyed. 
At  American  Fork,  the  next  settlement,  they  offered  some  of  their 
worn-out  animals  in  exchange  for  fresh  ones,  and  visited  the  town 
to  buy  provisions.  There  was  but  one  answer  —  nothing  to  sell. 
Southward  they  continued,  through  Provo,  Springville,  Payson, 
Salt  Creek,  and  Fillmore,  at  all  settlements  making  the  same  effort 
to  purchase  the  food  of  which  they  stood  in  need,  and  at  all  receiv- 
ing the  same  reply. 

So  much  were  their  supplies  now  reduced  that  they  hastened 
on  until  Corn  Creek  was  reached ;  there  they  did  obtain  a  little 
relief,  some  Indians  selling  them  about  thirty  bushels  of  corn.  But 
at  Beaver,  a  larger  place,  non-intercourse  was  again  proclaimed, 
and  at  Parowan,  through  which  led  the  road  built  by  the  general 
government,  they  were  forbidden  to  pass  over  this  directly  through 
the  town,  and  the  local  mill  would  not  even  grind  their  own  corn. 
At  Cedar  Creek,  one  of  the  largest  southern  settlements,  they 
were  allowed  to  buy  fifty  bushels  of  wheat,  and  to  have  it  and  their 
corn  ground  at  John  D.  Lee's  mill.  After  a  day's  delay  they 
started  on,  but  so  worn  out  were  their  animals  that  it  took  them 
three  days  to  reach  Iron  Creek,  twenty  miles  beyond,  and  two 
more  days  to  reach  Mountain  Meadows,  fifteen  miles  farther 
south. 

These  "meadows"  are  a  valley,  350  miles  south  of  Salt  Lake 
City,  about  five  miles  long  by  one  wide.  They  are  surrounded  by 
mountains,  and  narrow  at  the  lower  end  to  a  width  of  400  yards, 
where  a  gap  leads  out  to  the  desert.  A  large  spring  near  this 
gap  made  that  spot  a  natural  resting-place,  and  there  the  emi- 
grants pitched  their  camp.  Had  they  been  in  any  way  suspicious 
of  Indian  treachery  they  would  not  have  stopped  there,  because, 
from  the  elevations  on  either  side,  they  were  subject  to  rifle  fire. 
Their  anxiety,  however,  was  not  about  the  Indians,  whom  they  had 


THE   MOUNTAIN   MEADOWS   MASSACRE  52 1 

found  friendly,  but  about  the  problem  of  making  the  trip  of  seventy 
days  to  San  Bernardino,  across  a  desert  country,  with  their  worn- 
out  animals  and  their  scant  supplies.  Had  Mormon  cruelty  taken 
only  the  form  of  withholding  provisions  and  forage  from  this  com- 
pany, its  effect  would  have  satisfied  their  most  evil  wishers. 

On  the  morning  of  Monday,  September  7,  still  unsuspicious  of 
any  form  of  danger,  their  camp  was  suddenly  fired  upon  by  Indians, 
(and  probably  by  some  white  men  disguised  as  Indians).  Seven  of 
the  emigrants  were  killed  in  this  attack  and  sixteen  were  wounded. 
Unexpected  as  was  this  manifestation  of  hostility,  the  company 
was  too  well  organized  to  be  thrown  into  a  panic.  The  fire  was 
returned,  and  one  Indian  was  killed,  and  two  chiefs  fatally  wounded. 
The  wagons  were  corralled  at  once  as  a  sort  of  fortification,  and 
the  wheels  were  chained  together.  In  the  centre  of  this  corral 
a  rifle  pit  was  dug,  large  enough  to  hold  all  their  people,  and  in 
this  way  they  were  protected  from  shots  fired  at  them  from  either 
side  of  the  valley.  In  this  little  fort  they  successfully  defended 
themselves  during  that  and  the  ensuing  three  days.  Not  doubting 
that  Indians  were  their  only  assailants,  two  of  their  number  suc- 
ceeded in  escaping  from  the  camp  on  a  mission  to  Cedar  City  to 
ask  for  assistance.  These  messengers  were  met  by  three  Mor- 
mons, who  shot  one  of  them  dead,  and  wounded  the  other ;  the 
latter  seems  to  have  made  his  way  back  to  the  camp. 

The  Arkansans  soon  suffered  for  water,  as  the  spring  was  a 
hundred  yards  distant.  Two  of  them  during  one  day  made  a  dash, 
carrying  buckets,  and  got  back  with  them  safely,  under  a  heavy 
fire.1 

With  some  reinforcements  from  the  south,  the  Indians  now 
numbered  about  four  hundred.  They  shot  down  some  seventy  head 
of  the  emigrants'  cattle,  and  on  Wednesday  evening  made  another 
attack  in  force  on  the  camp,  but  were  repulsed.  Still  another  at- 
tack the  next  morning  had  the  same  result.  This  determined  resist- 
ance upset  the  plans  of  the  Mormons  who  had  instigated  the  Indian 
attacks.  They  had  expected  that  the  travellers  would  be  overcome 
in    the  first  surprise,   and  that   their    butchery  would    easily  be 

1  Lee  denies  positively  a  story  that  the  Mormons  shot  two  little  girls  who  were 
dressed  in  white  and  sent  out  for  water.  He  says  that  when  the  Arkansans  saw  a  white 
man  in  the  valley  (Lee  himself)  they  ran  up  a  white  flag  and  sent  two  little  boys  to  talk 
with  him;  that  he  refused  to  see  them,  as  he  was  then  awaiting  orders,  and  that  he  kept 
the  Indians  from  shooting  them.      "  Mormonism  Unveiled,"  p.  231. 


522 


THE    STORY    OF   THE   MORMONS 


accounted  for  as  the  result  of  an  Indian  raid  on  their  camp.  But 
they  were  not  to  be  balked  of  their  object.  To  save  themselves 
from  the  loss  of  life  that  would  be  entailed  by  a  charge  on  the 
Arkansans'  defences,  they  resorted  to  a  scheme  of  the  most  delib- 
erate treachery. 

On  Friday,  the  nth,  a  Mormon  named  William  Bateman  was 
sent  forward  with  a  flag  of  truce.  The  other  undisguised  Mor- 
mons remained  in  concealment,  and  the  Indians  had  been  in- 
structed to  keep  entirely  out  of  sight.  The  beleaguered  company 
were  delighted  to  see  a  white  man,  and  at  once  sent  one  of  their 
number  to  meet  him.  Their  ammunition  was  almost  exhausted, 
their  dead  were  unburied  in  their  midst,  and  their  situation  was 
desperate.  Bateman,  following  out  his  instructions,  told  the  repre- 
sentative of  the  emigrants  that  the  Mormons  had  come  to  their  assist- 
ance, and  that,  if  they  would  place  themselves  in  the  white  men's 
hands  and  follow  directions,  they  would  be  conducted  in  safety  to 
Cedar  City,  there  to  await  a  proper  opportunity  for  proceeding 
on  their  journey.1  This  plan  was  agreed  to  without  any  delay, 
and  John  D.  Lee  was  directed  by  John  M.  Higbee,  major  of  the 
Iron  Militia,  and  chief  in  command  of  the  Mormon  party,  to  go  to 
the  camp  to  see  that  the  plot  agreed  upon  was  carried  out,  Samuel 
McMurdy  and  Samuel  Knight  following  him  with  two  wagons 
which  were  a  part  of  the   necessary  equipment. 

Never  had  a  man  been  called  upon  to  perform  a  more  das- 
tardly part  than  that  which  was  assigned  to  Lee.  Entering  the 
camp  of  the  beleaguered  people  as  their  friend,  he  was  to  induce 
them  to  abandon  their  defences,  give  up  all  their  weapons,  sepa- 
rate the  adults  from  the  children  and  wounded,  who  were  to 
be  placed  in  the  wagons,  and  then,  at  a  given  signal,  every  one  of 
the  party  was  to  be  killed  by  the  white  men  who  walked  by  their 
sides  as  their  protectors.  Lee  draws  a  picture  of  his  feelings  on 
entering  the  camp  which  ought  to  be  correct,  even  if  circumstances 
lead  one  to  attribute  it  to  the  pen  of  a  man  who  naturally  wished 
to  find  some  extenuation  for  himself  :  "  I  doubt  the  power  of  man 
being  equal  to  even  imagine  how  wretched  I  felt.  No  language 
can  describe  my  feelings.  My  position  was  painful,  trying,  and 
awful ;  my  brain  seemed  to  be  on  fire  ;  my  nerves  were  for  a 
moment  unstrung ;  humanity  was  overpowering  as  I   thought  of 

1  This  account  follows  Lee's  confession,  "  Mormonism  Unveiled,"  p.  236  ft". 


THE    MOUNTAIN    MEADOWS    MASSACRE  523 

the  cruel,  unmanly  part  that  I  was  acting.  Tears  of  bitter  anguish 
fell  in  streams  from  my  eyes ;  my  tongue  refused  its  office ;  my 
faculties  were  dormant,  stupefied  and  deadened  by  grief.  I 
wished  that  the  earth  would  open  and  swallow  me  where  I  stood." 

When  Lee  entered  the  camp  all  the  people,  men,  women,  and 
children,  gathered  around  him,  some  delighted  over  the  hope  of 
deliverance,  while  others  showed  distrust  of  his  intentions.  Their 
position  was  so  strong  that  they  felt  some  hesitation  in  abandoning 
it,  and  Lee  says  that,  if  their  ammunition  had  not  been  so  nearly 
exhausted,  they  would  never  have  surrendered.  But  their  hesita- 
tion was  soon  overcome,  and  the  carrying  out  of  the  plot 
proceeded. 

All  their  arms,  the  wounded,  and  the  smallest  children  were 
placed  in  the  two  wagons.  As  soon  as  these  were  loaded,  a  mes- 
senger from  Higbee,  named  McFarland,  rode  up  with  a  message 
that  everything  should  be  hastened,  as  he  feared  he  could  not  hold 
back  the  Indians.  The  wagons  were  then  started  at  once  toward 
Cedar  City,  Lee  and  the  two  drivers  accompanying  them,  and  the 
others  of  the  party  set  out  on  foot  for  the  place  where  the  Mormon 
troops  were  awaiting  them,  some  two  hundred  yards  distant.  First 
went  McFarland  on  horseback,  then  the  women  and  larger  chil- 
dren, and  then  the  men.  When,  in  this  order,  they  came  to  the 
place  where  the  Mormons  were  stationed,  the  men  of  the  party 
cheered  the  latter  as  their  deliverers. 

As  the  wagons  passed  out  of  sight  over  an  elevation,  the  march 
of  the  rest  of  the  party  was  resumed.  The  women  and  larger  chil- 
dren walked  ahead,  then  came  the  men  in  single  file,  an  armed 
Mormon  walking  by  the  side  of  each  Arkansan.  This  gave  the  ap- 
pearance of  the  best  possible  protection.  When  they  had  advanced 
far  enough  to  bring  the  women  and  children  into  the  midst  of  a 
company  of  Indians  concealed  in  a  growth  of  cedars,  the  agreed 
signal  — the  words,  "  Do  your  duty  "  —  was  given.  As  these  words 
were  spoken,  each  Mormon  turned  and  shot  the  Arkansan  who  was 
walking  by  his  side,  and  Indians  and  other  Mormons  attacked  the 
women  and  children  who  were  walking  ahead,  while  Lee  and  his 
two  companions  killed  the  wounded  and  the  older  of  the  children 
who  were  in  the  wagons. 

The  work  of  killing  the  men  was  performed  so  effectually  that 
only  two  or  three  of  them  escaped,  and  these  were  overtaken  and 


524 


THE   STORY    OF   THE   MORMONS 


killed  soon  after.1  Indeed,  only  the  nervousness  natural  to  men 
who  were  assigned  to  perform  so  horrible  a  task  could  prevent  the 
murderers  from  shooting  dead  the  unarmed  men  walking  by  their 
sides.  With  the  women  and  children  it  was  different.  Instead  of 
being  shot  down  without  warning,  they  first  heard  the  shots  that 
killed  their  only  protectors,  and  then  beheld  the  Indians  rushing 
on  them  with  their  usual  whoops,  brandishing  tomahawks,  knives, 
and  guns.  There  were  cries  for  mercy,  mothers'  pleas  for  children's 
lives,  and  maidens'  appeals  to  manly  honor ;  but  all  in  vain.  It 
was  not  necessary  to  use  firearms ;  indeed,  they  would  have  endan- 
gered the  assailants  themselves.  The  tomahawk  and  the  knife 
sufficed,  and  in  the  space  of  a  few  moments  every  woman  and  older 
child  was  a  corpse. 

When  Lee  and  the  men  in  charge  of  the  two  wagons  heard  the 
firing,  they  halted  at  once,  as  this  was  the  signal  agreed  on  for 
them  to  perform  their  part.  McMurdy's  wagon,  containing  the 
sick  and  wounded  and  the  little  children,  was  in  advance,  Knight's, 
with  a  few  passengers  and  the  weapons,  following.  We  have  three 
accounts  of  what  happened  when  the  signal  was  given,  Lee's  own, 
and  the  testimony  of  the  other  two  at  Lee's  trial.  Lee  says  that 
McMurdy  at  once  went  up  to  Knight's  wagon,  and,  raising  his  rifle 
and  saying,  "  O  Lord  my  God,  receive  their  spirits ;  it  is  for  Thy 
Kingdom  I  do  this,"  fired,  killing  two  men  with  the  first  shot.  Lee 
admits  that  he  intended  to  do  his  part  of  the  killing,  but  says  that 
in  his  excitement  his  pistol  went  off  prematurely  and  narrowly  es- 
caped wounding  McMurdy ;  that  Knight  then  shot  one  man,  and 
with  the  butt  of  his  gun  brained  a  little  boy  who  had  run  up  to  him, 
and  that  the  Indians  then  came  up  and  finished  killing  all  the  sick 
and  wounded.  McMurdy  testified  that  Lee  killed  the  first  person 
in  his  wagon  —  a  woman  —  and  also  shot  two  or  three  others. 
When  asked  if  he  himself  killed  any  one  that  day,  McMurdy  re- 
plied, "  I  believe  I  am  not  upon  trial.     I  don't  wish  to  answer." 

1  This  is  Judge  Cradlebaugh's  and  Lee's  statement.  Lee  said  he  could  have  given 
the  details  of  their  pursuit  and  capture  if  he  had  had  time.  An  affidavit  by  James  Lynch, 
who  accompanied  Superintendent  Forney  to  the  Meadows  on  his  first  trip  there  in  March- 
1859  (printed  in  Sen.  Doc.  No.  42),  says  that  one  of  the  three,  who  was  not  killed  on 
the  spot,  "was  followed  by  five  Mormons  who,  through  promises  of  safety,  etc.,  prevailed 
upon  him  to  return  to  Mountain  Meadows,  where  they  inhumanly  butchered  him,  laugh- 
ing at  and  disregarding  his  loud  and  repeated  cries  for  mercy,  as  witnessed  and  described 
by  Ira  Hatch,  one  of  the  five.  The  object  of  killing  this  man  was  to  leave  no  witness 
competent  to  give  testimony  in  a  court  of  justice  but  God." 


THE   MOUNTAIN   MEADOWS   MASSACRE  525 

Knight  testified  that  he  saw  Lee  strike  down  a  woman  with  his  gun 
or  a  club,  denying  that  he  himself  took  any  part  in  the  slaughter. 
Nephi  Johnson,  another  witness  at  Lee's  second  trial,  testified  that 
he  saw  Lee  and  an  Indian  pull  a  man  out  of  one  of  the  wagons, 
and  he  thought  Lee  cut  the  man's  throat. 

The  only  persons  spared  in  this  whole  company  were  seventeen 
children,  varying  in  age  from  two  months  to  seven  years.  They  w 
were  given  to  Mormon  families  in  southern  Utah  — "sold  out," 
says  Forney  in  his  report,  "  to  different  persons  in  Cedar  City, 
Harmony,  and  Painter  Creek.  Bills  are  now  in  my  possession  from 
different  individuals  asking  payment  from  the  government.  I  can- 
not condescend  to  become  the  medium  of  even  transmitting  such 
claims  to  the  department."  The  government  directed  Forney  in 
1858  to  collect  these  children,  and  he  did  so.  Congress  in  1859  ap- 
propriated $10,000  to  defray  the  expense  of  returning  them  to  their 
friends  in  Arkansas,  and  on  June  27  of  that  year  fifteen  of  them 
(two  boys  being  retained  as  government  witnesses)  set  out  for  the 
East  from  Salt  Lake  City  in  charge  of  a  company  of  United  States 
dragoons  and  five  women  attendants.  Judge  Cradlebaugh  quotes 
one  of  these  children,  a  boy  less  than  nine  years  old,  as  saying  in 
his  presence,  when  they  were  brought  to  Salt  Lake  City,  "  Oh,  I 
wish  I  was  a  man.  I  know  what  I  would  do.  I  would  shoot  John  D. 
Lee.     I  saw  him  shoot  my  mother." 

The  total  number  in  the  Arkansas  party  is  not  exactly  known. 
The  victims  numbered  more  than  120.  Jacob  Hamblin  testified 
at  the  Lee  trial  that,  the  following  spring,  he  and  his  man  buried 
"  120  odd  "  skulls,  counting  them  as  they  gathered  them  up. 

A  few  young  women,  in  the  confusion  of  the  Indian  attack, 
concealed  themselves,  but  they  were  soon  found.  Hamblin  testi- 
fied at  Lee's  second  trial  that  Lee,  in  a  long  conversation  with 
him,  soon  after  the  massacre,  told  him  that,  when  he  rejoined  the 
Mormon  troops,  an  Indian  chief  brought  to  him  two  girls  from 
thirteen  to  fifteen  years  old,  whom  he  had  found  hiding  in  a 
thicket,  and  asked  what  should  be  done  with  them,  as  they  were 
pretty  and  he  wanted  to  save  them.  Lee  replied  that  "  according 
to  the  orders  he  had,  they  were  too  old  and  too  big  to  let  go." 
Then  by  Lee's  direction  the  chief  shot  one  of  them,  and  Lee 
threw  the  other  down  and  cut  her  throat.  Hamblin  said  that  an 
Indian  boy  conducted  him  to  the  place  where  the  girls'  bodies  lay, 


526  THE    STORY    OF   THE    MORMONS 

a  long  way  from  the  rest,  up  a  ravine,  unburied  and  with  their 
throats  cut.  One  of  the  little  children  saved  from  the  massacre 
was  taken  home  by  Hamblin,  and  she  said  the  murdered  girls  were 
her  sisters.  Richard  F.  Burton,  who  visited  Utah  in  i860,  men- 
tions, as  one  of  the  current  stories  in  connection  with  the  massacre, 
that,  when  a  girl  of  sixteen  knelt  before  one  of  the  Mormons  and 
prayed  for  mercy,  he  led  her  into  the  thicket,  violated  her,  and 
then  cut  her  throat.1 

As  soon  as  the  slaughter  was  completed  the  plundering  began. 
Beside  their  wagons,  horses,  and  cattle,2  they  had  a  great  deal  of 
other  valuable  property,  the  whole  being  estimated  by  Judge 
Cradlebaugh  at  from  $60,000  to  $70,000.  When  Lee  got  back 
to  the  main  party,  the  searching  of  the  bodies  of  the  men  for 
valuables  began.  "  I  did  hold  the  hat  awhile,"  he  confesses,  "but 
I  got  so  sick  that  I  had  to  give  it  to  some  other  person."  He  says 
there  were  more  than  five  hundred  head  of  cattle,  a  large  number 
of  which  the  Indians  killed  or  drove  away,  while  Klingensmith, 
Haight,  and  Higbee,  leaders  in  the  enterprise,  drove  others  to 
Salt  Lake  City  and  sold  them.  The  horses  and  mules  were 
divided  in  the  same  way.  The  Indians  (and  probably  their  white 
comrades)  had  made  quick  work  with  the  effects  of  the  women. 
Their  bodies,  young  and  old,  were  stripped  naked,  and  left,  objects 
of  the  ribald  jests  of  their  murderers.  Lee  says  that  in  one 
place  he  counted  the  bodies  of  ten  children  less  than  sixteen 
years  old. 

When  the  Mormons  had  finished  rifling  the  dead,  all  were 
called  together  and  admonished  by  their  chiefs  to  keep  the 
massacre  a  secret  from  the  whole  world,  not  even  letting  their 
wives  know  of  it,  and  all  took  the  most  solemn  oath  to  stand 
by  one  another  and  declare  that  the  killing  was  the  work  of 
Indians.  Most  of  the  party  camped  that  night  on  the  Meadows, 
but  Lee  and  Higbee  passed  the  night  at  Jacob  Hamblin's  ranch. 

In  the  morning  the  Mormons  went  back  to  bury  the  dead.  All 
these  lay  naked,  "making  the  scene,"  says  Lee,  "one  of  the  most 
loathsome  and  ghastly  that  can  be  imagined."     The  bodies  were 

1  "City  of  the  Saints,"  p.  412. 

2  Superintendent  Forney,  in  his  report  of  March,  1859,  said:  "Facts  in  my  posses- 
sion warrant  me  in  estimating  that  there  was  distributed  a  few  days  after  the  massacre, 
among  the  leading  church  dignitaries,  $30,000  worth  of  property.  It  is  presumable  they 
also  had  some  money." 


THE   MOUNTAIN    MEADOWS   MASSACRE  527 

piled  up  in  heaps  in  little  depressions,  and  a  pretence  was  made  of 
covering  them  with  dirt ;  but  the  ground  was  hard  and  their  mur- 
derers had  few  tools,  and  as  a  consequence  the  wild  beasts  soon 
unearthed  them,  and  the  next  spring  the  bones  were  scattered  over 
the  surface. 

This  work  finished,  the  party,  who  had  been  joined  during  the 
night  by  Colonel  Dame,  Judge  Lewis,  Isaac  C.  Haight,  and  others 
of  influence,  held  another  council,  at  which  God  was  thanked  for 
delivering  their  enemies  into  their  hands ;  another  oath  of  secrecy 
was  taken,  and  all  voted  that  any  person  who  divulged  the  story  of 
the  massacre  should  suffer  death,  but  that  Brigham  Young  should 
be  informed  of  it.  It  was  also  voted,  according  to  Lee,  that  Bishop 
Klingensmith  should  take  charge  of  the  plunder  for  the  benefit  of 
the  church. 

The  story  of  this  slaughter,  to  this  point,  except  in  minor  par- 
ticulars noted,  is  undisputed.  No  Mormon  now  denies  that  the 
emigrants  were  killed,  or  that  Mormons  participated  largely  in  the 
slaughter.  What  the  church  authorities  have  sought  to  establish 
has  been  their  own  ignorance  of  it  in  advance,  and  their  condem- 
nation of  it  later.  In  examining  this  question  we  have,  to  assist 
us,  the  knowledge  of  the  kind  of  government  that  Young  had 
established  over  his  people  —  his  practical  power  of  life  and 
death  ;  the  fact  that  the  Arkansans  were  passing  south  from  Salt 
Lake  City,  and  that  their  movements  had  been  known  to  Young 
from  the  start  and  their  treatment  been  subject  to  his  direction  ; 
the  failure  of  Young  to  make  any  effort  to  have  the  murderers 
punished,  when  a  "  crook  of  his  finger  "  would  have  given  them 
up  to  justice ;  the  coincidence  of  the  massacre  with  Young's  threat 
to  Captain  Van  Vliet,  uttered  on  September  9,  "  If  the  issue  con- 
tinues, you  may  tell  the  government  to  stop  all  emigration  across 
the  continent,  for  the  Indians  will  kill  all  who  attempt  it "  ;  Young's 
failure  to  mention  this  "  Indian  outrage  "  in  his  report  as  superin- 
tendent of  Indian  affairs,  and  the  silence  of  the  Mormon  press  on 
the  subject.1  If  we  accept  Lee's  plausible  theory  that,  at  his 
second  trial,  the  church  gave  him  up  as  a  sop  to  justice,  and 
loosened  the  tongues  of  witnesses  against  him,  this    makes  that 

1  H.  IT.  Bancroft,  in  his  "Utah,"  as  usual,  defends  the  Mormon  church  against  the 
charge  of  responsibility  for  the  massacre,  and  calls  Judge  Cradlebaugh's  charge  to  the 
grand  jury  a  slur  that  the  evidence  did  not  excuse. 


528  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

part  of  the  testimony  in  confirmation  of  Lee's  statement,  elicited 
from  them,  all  the  stronger. 

Let  us  recall  that  Lee  himself  had  been  an  active  member  of 
the  church  for  nearly  forty  years,  following  it  from  Missouri  to 
Utah,  travelling  penniless  as  a  missionary  at  the  bidding  of  his 
superiors,  becoming  a  polygamist  before  he  left  Nauvoo,  accepting 
in  Utah  the  view  that  "  Brigham  spoke  by  direction  of  the  God 
of  heaven,"  and  saying,  as  he  stood  by  his  coffin  looking  into  the 
rifles  of  his  executioners,  "  I  believe  in  the  Gospel  that  was  taught 
in  its  purity  by  Joseph  Smith  in  former  days."  How  much  Young 
trusted  him  is  seen  in  the  fact  that,  by  Young's  direction,  he 
located  the  southern  towns  of  Provo,  Fillmore,  Parowan,  etc.,  was 
appointed  captain  of  militia  at  Cedar  City,  was  president  of  civil 
affairs  at  Harmony,  probate  judge  of  the  county  (before  and  after 
the  massacre),  a  delegate  to  the  convention  which  framed  the  con- 
stitution of  the  State  of  Deseret,  a  member  of  the  territorial  legis- 
lature (after  the  massacre),  and  "  Indian  farmer "  of  the  district 
including  the  Meadows  when  the  massacre  occurred. 

Lee's  account  of  the  steps  leading  up  to  the  massacre  and  of 
what  followed  is,  in  brief,  that,  about  ten  days  before  it  occurred, 
General  George  A.  Smith,  one  of  the  Twelve,  called  on  him  at 
Washington  City,  and,  in  the  course  of  their  conversation,  asked, 
"  Suppose  an  emigrant  train  should  come  along  through  this  south- 
ern country,  making  threats  against  our  people  and  bragging  of 
the  part  they  took  in  helping  kill  our  prophet,  what  do  you  think 
the  brethren  would  do  with  them  ? "  Lee  replied  :  "  You  know  the 
brethren  are  now  under  the  influence  of  the  '  Reformation,'  and 
are  still  red-hot  for  the  Gospel.  The  brethren  believe  the  govern- 
ment wishes  to  destroy  them.  I  really  believe  that  any  train  of  emi- 
grants that  may  come  through  here  will  be  attacked  and  probably 
all  destroyed.  Unless  emigrants  have  a  pass  from  Brigham 
Young  or  some  one  in  authority,  they  will  certainly  never  get 
safely  through  this  country."  Smith  said  that  Major  Haight  had 
given  him  the  same  assurance.  It  was  Lee's  belief  that  Smith 
had  been  sent  south  in  advance  of  the  emigrants  to  prepare  for 
what  followed. 

Two  days  before  the  first  attack  on  the  camp,  Lee  was  sum- 
moned to  Cedar  City  by  Isaac  Haight,  president  of  that  Stake, 
second   only  to  Colonel    Dame   in   church    authority  in  southern 


THE   MOUNTAIN    MEADOWS    MASSACRE  529 

Utah,  and  a  lieutenant  colonel  in  the  militia  under  Dame.  To 
make  their  conference  perfectly  secret,  they  took  some  blankets 
and  passed  the  night  in  an  old  iron  works.  There  Haight  told  Lee 
a  long  story  about  Captain  Fancher's  party,  charging  them  with 
abusing  the  Mormons,  burning  fences,  poisoning  water,  threaten- 
ing to  kill  Brigham  Young  and  all  the  apostles,  etc.  He  said 
that  unless  preventive  measures  were  taken,  the  whole  Mormon 
population  were  likely  to  be  butchered  by  troops  which  these  people 
would  bring  back  from  California.  Lee  says  that  he  believed  all 
this.  He  was  also  told  that,  at  a  council  held  that  day,  it  had  been 
decided  to  arm  the  Indians  and  "  have  them  give  the  emigrants  a 
brush,  and,  if  they  killed  part  or  all,  so  much  the  better."  When 
asked  who  authorized  this,  Haight  replied,  "  It  is  the  will  of  all  in 
authority,"  and  Lee  was  told  that  he  was  to  carry  out  the  order. 
The  intention  then  was  to  have  the  Indians  do  the  killing  without 
any  white  assistance.  On  his  way  home  Lee  met  a  large  body  of 
Indians  who  said  they  were  ordered  by  Haight,  Higbee,  and  Bishop 
Klingensmith,  to  kill  and  rob  the  emigrants,  and  wanted  Lee  to 
lead  them.  He  told  them  to  camp  near  the  emigrants  and  wait 
for  him  ;  but  they  made  the  attack,  as  described,  early  Monday 
morning,  without  capturing  the  camp,  and  drove  the  whites  into 
an  intrenchment  from  which  they  could  not  dislodge  them.  Hence 
the  change  of  plan. 

During  the  early  part  of  the  operations,  Lee  says,  a  messenger 
had  been  sent  to  Brigham  Young  for  orders.  On  Thursday  even- 
ing two  or  three  wagon  loads  of  Mormons,  all  armed,  arrived  at  Lee's 
camp  in  the  Meadows,  the  party  including  Major  Higbee  of  the 
Iron  Militia,  Bishop  Klingensmith,  and  many  members  of  the  High 
Council.  When  all  were  assembled,  Major  Higbee  reported  that 
Haight's  orders  were  that  "all  the  emigrants  must  be  put  out  of 
the  way  "  ;  that  they  had  no  pass  (Young  could  have  given  them 
one);  that  they  were  really  a  part  of  Johnston's  army,  and,  if  allowed 
to  proceed  to  California,  they  would  bring  destruction  on  all  the 
settlements  in  Utah.  All  knelt  in  prayer,  after  which  Higbee  gave 
Lee  a  paper  ordering  the  destruction  of  all  who  could  talk.  After 
further  prayers,  Higbee  said  to  Lee,  "  Brother  Lee,  I  am  ordered 
by  President  Haight  to  inform  you  that  you  shall  receive  a  crown 
of  celestial  glory  for  your  faithfulness,  and  your  eternal  joy  shall 
be  complete."     Lee  says  that  he  was  "  much  shaken  "  by  this  offer, 

2M 


530  THE    STORY    OF   THE    MORMONS 

because  of  his  complete  faith  in  the  power  of  the  priesthood  to 
fulfil  such  promises.  The  outcome  of  the  conference  was  the 
adoption  of  the  plan  of  treachery  that  was  so  successfully  carried 
out  on  Friday  morning.  The  council  had  lasted  so  long  that  the 
party  merely  had  time  for  breakfast  before  Bateman  set  out  for  the 
camp  with  his  white  flag.1 

Several  days  after  the  massacre,  Haight  told  Lee  that  the  mes- 
senger sent  to  Young  for  instructions  had  returned  with  orders  to 
let  the  emigrants  pass  in  safety,  and  that  he  (Haight)  had  coun- 
termanded the  order  for  the  massacre,  but  his  messenger  "did  not 
go  to  the  Meadows  at  all."  All  parties  were  evidently  beginning 
to  realize  the  seriousness  of  their  crime.  Lee  was  then  directed 
by  the  council  to  go  to  Young  with  a  verbal  report,  Haight  again 
promising  him  a  celestial  reward  if  he  would  implicate  no  more  of 
the  brethren  than  necessary  in  his  talk  with  Young.2  On  reaching 
Salt  Lake  City,  Lee  gave  Young  the  full  particulars  of  the  mas- 
sacre, step  by  step.  Young  remarked,  "  Isaac  [Haight]  has  sent 
me  word  that,  if  they  had  killed  every  man,  woman,  and  child  in 
the  outfit,  there  would  not  have  been  a  drop  of  innocent  blood  shed 
by  the  brethren  ;  for  they  were  a  set  of  murderers,  robbers,  and 
thieves." 

When  the  tale  was  finished,  Young  said  :  "  This  is  the  most 
unfortunate  affair  that  ever  befell  the  church.  I  am  afraid  of 
treachery  among  the  brethren  who  were  there.     If  any  one  tells 

1  Bishop  Klingensmith,  one  of  the  indicted,  in  whose  case  the  district  attorney 
entered  a  nolle  prosequi  in  order  that  he  might  be  a  witness  at  Lee's  first  trial,  said  in 
his  testimony  :  "  Coming  home  the  day  following  their  [emigrants']  departure  from  Cedar 
City,  met  Ira  Allen  four  miles  beyond  the  place  where  they  had  spoken  to  Lee.  Allen 
said,  'The  die  is  cast,  the  doom  of  the  emigrants  is  sealed.'  "  (This  was  in  reference  to  a 
meeting  in  Parowan,  when  the  destruction  of  the  emigrants  had  been  decided  on.)  "  He 
said  John  D.  Lee  had  received  orders  from  headquarters  at  Parowan  to  take  men  and 
go,  and  Joel  White  would  be  wanted  to  go  to  Pinto  Creek  and  revoke  the  order  to  suffer 
the  emigrants  to  pass.  The  third  day  after,  Haight  came  to  McFarland's  house  and  told 
witness  and  others  that  orders  had  come  in  from  camp  last  night.  Things  hadn't  gone 
along  as  had  been  expected,  and  reinforcements  were  wanted.  Haight  then  went  to 
Parowan  to  get  instructions,  and  received  orders  from  Dame  to  decoy  the  emigrants  out 
and  spare  nothing  but  the  small  children  who  could  not  tell  the  tale."  In  an  affidavit 
made  by  fhis  Bishop  in  April,  1 871,  he  said  :  "  I  do  not  know  whether  said  '  headquarters  ' 
meant  the  spiritual  headquarters  at  Parowan,  or  the  headquarters  of  the  commander-in- 
chief  at  Salt  Lake  City."      (Affidavit  in  full  in  "  Rocky  Mountain  Saints,"  p.  439.) 

2  "  At  that  time  I  believed  everything  he  said,  and  I  fully  expected  to  receive  the 
celestial  reward  that  he  promised  me.  But  now  [after  his  conviction]  I  say,  '  Damn 
all  such  celestial  rewards  as  I  am  to  get  for  what  I  did  on  that  fatal  day.'  "  —  "  Mor- 
monism  Unveiled,"  p.  251. 


THE    MOUNTAIN    MEADOWS    MASSACRE  531 

this  thing  so  that  it  will  become  public,  it  will  work  us  great  injury. 
I  want  you  to  understand  now  that  you  are  never  to  tell  this  again, 
not  even  to  Heber  C.  Kimball.  It  must  be  kept  a  secret  among 
ourselves.  When  you  get  home,  I  want  you  to  sit  down  and  write 
a  long  letter,  and  give  me  an  account  of  the  affair,  charging  it  to 
the  Indians.  You  sign  the  letter  as  farmer  to  the  Indians,  and 
direct  it  to  me  as  Indian  agent.  I  can  then  make  use  of  such  a 
letter  to  keep  off  all  damaging  and  troublesome  inquirers."  Lee 
did  so,  and  his  letter  was  put  in  evidence  at  his  trial. 

Lee  says  that  Young  then  dismissed  him  for  the  day,  directing 
him  to  call  again  the  next  morning,  and  that  Young  then  said  to 
him  :  "  I  have  made  that  matter  a  subject  of  prayer.  I  went  right 
to  God  with  it,  and  asked  him  to  take  the  horrid  vision  from  my 
sight  if  it  was  a  righteous  thing  that  my  people  had  done  in  killing 
those  people  at  the  Mountain  Meadows.  God  answered  me,  and 
at  once  the  vision  was  removed.  I  have  evidence  from  God  that 
he  has  overruled  it  all  for  good,  and  the  action  was  a  righteous  one 
and  well  intended."  1 

When  Lee  was  in  Salt  Lake  City  as  a  member  of  the  constitu- 
tional convention,  the  next  winter,  Young  treated  him,  at  his  house 
and  elsewhere,  with  all  the  friendliness  of  old.  No  one  conver- 
sant with  the  extent  of  Young's  authority  will  doubt  the  correct- 
ness of  Lee's  statement  that  "  if  Brigham  Young  had  wanted  one 
man  or  fifty  men  or  five  hundred  men  arrested,  all  he  would  have 
had  to  do  would  be  to  say  so,  and  they  would  have  been  arrested 
instantly.  There  was  no  escape  for  them  if  he  ordered  their  arrest. 
Every  man  who  knows  anything  of  affairs  in  Utah  at  that  time 
knows  this  is  so." 

At  the  second  trial  of  Lee  a  deposition  by  Brigham  Young  was 
read,  Young  pleading  ill  health  as  an  excuse  for  not  taking  the 
stand.  He  admitted  that  "  counsel  and  advice  were  given  to  the 
citizens  not  to  sell  grain  to  the  emigrants  for  their  stock,"  but  as- 
serted that  this  did  not  include  food  for  the  parties  themselves. 
He  also  admitted  that  Lee  called  on  him  and  began  telling  the 
story  of  the  massacre,  but  asserted  that  he  directed  him  to  stop,  as 
he  did  not  want  his  feelings  harrowed  up  with  a  recital  of  these 
details.     He  gave  as  an  excuse  for  not  bringing  the  guilty  to  jus- 

1  For  Lee's  account  of  his  interview  with  Young,  see  "  Mormonism  Unveiled,"  pp. 
252-254. 


532  THE    STORY   OF   THE    MORMONS 

tice,  or  at  least  making  an  investigation,  the  fact  that  a  new  gov- 
ernor was  on  his  way,  and  he  did  not  know  how  soon  he  would 
arrive.  As  Young  himself  was  keeping  this  governor  out  by 
armed  force,  and  declaring  that  he  alone  should  fill  that  place,  the 
value  of  his  excuse  can  be  easily  estimated.  Hamblin,  at  Lee's 
trial,  testified  that  he  told  Brigham  Young  and  George  A.  Smith 
"  everything  I  could  "  about  the  massacre,  and  that  Young  said  to 
him,  "  As  soon  as  we  can  get  a  court  of  justice  we  will  ferret  this 
thing  out,  but  till  then  don't  say  anything  about  it." 

Both  Knight  and  McMurphy  testified  that  they  took  their 
teams  to  Mountain  Meadows  under  compulsion.  Nephi  Johnson, 
another  participant,  when  asked  whether  he  acted  under  compul- 
sion, replied,  "  I  didn't  consider  it  safe  for  me  to  object,"  and  when 
compelled  to  answer  the  question  whether  any  person  had  ever 
been  injured  for  not  obeying  such  orders,  he  replied,  "Yes,  sir, 
they  had." 

Some  letters  published  in  the  Corinne  (Utah)  Reporter,  in  the 
early  seventies,  signed  "Argus,"  directly  accused  Young  of  re- 
sponsibility for  this  massacre.  Stenhouse  discovered  that  the 
author  had  been  for  thirty  years  a  Mormon,  a  high  priest  in  the 
church,  a  holder  of  responsible  civil  positions  in  the  territory,  and 
he  assured  Stenhouse  that  "  before  a  federal  court  of  justice,  where 
he  could  be  protected,  he  was  prepared  to  give  the  evidence  of  all 
that  he  asserted."  "Argus"  declared  that  when  the  Arkansans 
set  out  southward  from  the  Jordan,  a  courier  preceded  them  carry- 
ing Young's  orders  for  non-intercourse ;  that  they  were  directed  to 
go  around  Parowan  because  it  was  feared  that  the  military  prepa- 
rations at  that  place,  Colonel  Dame's  headquarters,  might  arouse 
their  suspicion ;  and  he  points  out  that  the  troops  who  killed  the 
emigrants  were  called  out  and  prepared  for  field  operations,  just 
as  the  territorial  law  directed,  and  were  subject  to  the  orders  of 
Young,  their  commander-in-chief. 

Not  until  the  so-called  Poland  Bill  of  1874  became  a  law  was 
any  one  connected  with  the  Mountain  Meadows  Massacre  even  in- 
dicted. Then  the  grand  jury,  under  direction  of  Judge  Boreman, 
of  the  Second  Judicial  District  of  Utah,  found  indictments  against 
Lee,  Dame,  Haight,  Higbee,  Klingensmith,  and  others.  Lee,  who 
had  remained  hidden  for  some  years  in  the  canon  of  the  Colorado,1 

1  Inman's  "  Great  Salt  Lake  Trail,"  p.  141. 


THE    MOUNTAIN    MEADOWS    MASSACRE  533 

was  reported  to  be  in  south  Utah  at  the  time,  and  Deputy  United 
States  Marshal  Stokes,  to  whom  the  warrant  for  his  arrest  was 
given,  set  out  to  find  him.  Stokes  was  told  that  Lee  had  gone 
back  to  his  hiding-place,  but  one  of  his  assistants  located  the 
accused  in  the  town  of  Panguitch,  and  there  they  found  him  con- 
cealed in  a  log  pen  near  a  house.  His  trial  began  at  Beaver,  on 
July  12,  1875.  The  first  jury  to  try  his  case  disagreed,  after  being 
out  three  days,  eight  Mormons  and  the  Gentile  foreman  voting  for 
acquittal,  and  three  Gentiles  for  conviction.  The  second  trial, 
which  took  place  at  Beaver,  in  September,  1876,  resulted  in  a  ver- 
dict of  "  guilty  of  murder  in  the  first  degree."  Beadle  says  of  the 
interest  which  the  church  then  took  in  his  conviction  :  "  Daniel  H. 
Wells  went  to  Beaver,  furnished  some  new  evidence,  coached  the 
witnesses,  attended  to  the  spiritual  wants  of  the  jury,  and  Lee  was 
convicted.  He  could  not  raise  the  money  ($1000)  necessary  to 
appeal  to  the  Supreme  Court  of  the  United  States,  although  he 
solicited  it  by  subscription  from  wealthy  leading  Mormons  for  sev- 
eral days  under  guard."  1 

Criminals  in  Utah  convicted  of  a  capital  crime  were  shot,  and 
this  was  Lee's  fate.  It  was  decided  that  the  execution  should 
take  place  at  the  scene  of  the  massacre,  and  there  the  sentence  of 
the  court  was  carried  out  on  March  23,  1877.  The  coffin  was 
made  of  rough  pine  boards  after  the  arrival  of  the  prisoner,  and 
while  he  sat  looking  at  the  workmen  a  short  distance  away. 
When  all  the  arrangements  were  completed,  the  marshal  read  the 
order  of  the  court  and  gave  Lee  an  opportunity  to  speak.  A  pho- 
tographer being  ready  to  take  a  picture  of  the  scene,  Lee  asked 
that  a  copy  of  the  photograph  be  given  to  each  of  three  of  his  wives, 
naming  them.  He  then  stood  up,  having  been  seated  on  his  coffin, 
and  spoke  quietly  for  some  time.  He  said  that  he  was  sacrificed 
to  satisfy  the  feelings  of  others ;  that  he  died  "  a  true  believer 
in  the  Gospel  of  Jesus  Christ,"  but  did  not  believe  everything 
then  taught  by  Brigham  Young.  He  asserted  that  he  "  did  noth- 
ing designedly  wrong  in  this  unfortunate  affair,"  but  did  every- 
thing in  his  power  to  save  the  emigrants.  Five  executioners  then 
stepped  forward,  and,  when  their  rifles  exploded,  Lee  fell  dead  on 
his  coffin. 

Major  (afterward  General)  Carlton,  returning  from  California 

1  "  Polygamy,  "  p.  507. 


534  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

in  1859,  where  he  had  escorted  a  paymaster,  passed  through  Moun- 
tain Meadows,  and,  finding  many  bones  of  the  victims  still  scattered 
around,  gathered  them,  and  erected  over  them  a  cairn  of  stones, 
on  one  of  which  he  had  engraved  the  words :  "  Here  lie  the  bones 
of  120  men,  women,  and  children  from  Arkansas,  murdered  on 
the  10th  day  of  September,  1857."  In  the  centre  of  the  cairn  was 
placed  a  beam,  some  fifteen  feet  high,  with  a  cross-tree,  on  which 
was  painted :  "  Vengeance  is  mine,  saith  the  Lord,  and  I  will 
repay  it."  It  was  said  that  this  was  removed  by  order  of  Brigham 
Young.1 

1  "  Humiliating  as  it  is  to  confess,  in  the  42c!  Congress  there  were  gentlemen  to  be 
found  in  the  committees  of  the  House  and  in  the  Senate  who  were  bold  enough  to 
declare  their  opposition  to  all  investigation.  One  who  had  a  national  reputation  during 
the  war,  from  Bunker  Hill  to  New  Orleans,  was  not  ashamed  to  say  to  those  who  sought 
the  legislation  that  was  necessary  to  make  investigation  possible,  that  it  was  '  too  late.'  " 
—  "  Rocky  Mountain  Saints,"  p.  456. 


CHAPTER   XVII 

AFTER  THE   "WAR" 

With  the  return  of  the  people  to  their  homes,  the  peaceful 
avocations  of  life  in  Utah  were  resumed.  The  federal  judges 
received  assignments  to  their  districts,  and  the  other  federal  officers 
took  possession  of  their  offices.  Chief  Justice  Eckles  selected  as 
his  place  of  residence  Camp  Floyd,  as  General  Johnston's  camp 
was  named ;  Judge  Sinclair's  district  included  Salt  Lake  City,  and 
Judge  Cradlebaugh's  the  southern  part  of  the  state. 

Judge  Cradlebaugh,  who  conceived  it  to  be  a  judge's  duty  to 
see  that  crime  was  punished,  took  steps  at  once  to  secure  indict- 
ments in  connection  with  the  notorious  murders  committed  during 
the  "  Reformation,"  and  we  have  seen  in  a  former  chapter  with 
what  poor  results.  He  also  personally  visited  the  Mountain 
Meadows,  talked  with  whites  and  Indians  cognizant  with  the 
massacre,  and,  on  affidavits  sworn  to  before  him,  issued  warrants 
for  the  arrest  of  Haight,  Higbee,  Lee,  and  thirty-four  others  as 
participants  therein.  In  order  to  hold  court  with  any  prospect 
of  a  practical  result,  a  posse  of  soldiers  was  absolutely  necessary, 
even  for  the  protection  of  witnesses ;  but  Governor  Cumming,  true 
to  the  reputation  he  had  secured  as  a  Mormon  ally,  declared  that 
he  saw  no  necessity  for  such  use  of  federal  troops,  and  requested 
their  removal  from  Provo,  where  the  court  was  in  session  ;  and  when 
the  judge  refused  to  grant  his  request,  he  issued  a  proclamation  in 
which  he  stated  that  the  presence  of  the  military  had  a  tendency 
"to  disturb  the  peace  and  subvert  the  ends  of  justice."  Before 
this  dispute  had  proceeded  farther,  General  Johnston  received  an 
order  from  Secretary  Floyd,  approved  by  Attorney  General  Black, 
directing  that  in  future  he  should  instruct  his  troops  to  act  as  a 
posse  comitatus  only  on  the  written  application  of  Governor  Cum- 
ming. Thus  did  the  church  win  one  of  its  first  victories  after 
the  reestablishment  of  "  peace." 

535 


536  THE    STORY    OF   THE   MORMONS 

An  incident  in  Salt  Lake  City  at  this  time  might  have  brought 
about  a  renewal  of  the  conflict  between  federal  and  Mormon 
forces.  The  engraver  of  a  plate  with  which  to  print  counterfeit 
government  drafts,  when  arrested,  turned  state's  evidence  and 
pointed  out  that  the  printing  of  the  counterfeits  had  been  done 
over  the  "  Deseret  Store  "  in  Salt  Lake  City,  which  was  on  Young's 
premises.  United  States  Marshal  Dotson  secured  the  plate,  and 
with  it  others,  belonging  to  Young,  on  which  Deseret  currency  had 
been  printed.  This  seemed  to  bring  the  matter  so  close  to  Young 
that  officers  from  Camp  Floyd  called  on  Governor  Cumming  to 
secure  his  cooperation  in  arresting  Young  should  that  step  be 
decided  on.  The  governor  refused  with  indignation  to  be  a  party 
to  what  he  called  "creeping  through  walls,"  that  is,  what  he  con- 
sidered a  roundabout  way  to  secure  Young's  arrest ;  and,  when  it 
became  rumored  in  the  city  that  General  Johnston  would  use  his 
troops  without  the  governor's  cooperation,  Cumming  directed 
Wells,  the  commander  of  the  Nauvoo  Legion,  who  had  so  recently 
been  in  rebellion  against  the  government,  to  hold  his  militia  in 
readiness  for  orders.  Wells  is  quoted  by  Bancroft  as  saying  that 
he  told  Cumming,  "  We  would  not  let  them  [the  soldiers]  come ; 
that  if  they  did  come,  they  would  never  get  out  alive  if  we  could 
help  it."  1  The  decision  of  the  Washington  authorities  in  favor 
of  Governor  Cumming  as  against  the  federal  judges  once  more 
restored  "peace."  The  only  sufferer  from  this  incident  was 
Marshal  Dotson,  against  whom  Young,  in  his  probate  court, 
obtained  a  judgment  of  $2600  for  injury  to  the  Deseret  currency 
plates,  and  a  house  belonging  to  Dotson,  renting  for  $500  a  year, 
was  sold  to  satisfy  this  judgment,  and  bought  in  by  an  agent  of 
Young. 

To  complete  the  story  of  this  forgery,  it  may  be  added  that 
Brewer,  the  engraver  who  turned  state's  evidence,  was  shot  down 
in  Main  Street,  Salt  Lake  City,  one  evening,  in  company  with 
J.  Johnson,  a  gambler  who  had  threatened  to  shoot  a  Mormon 
editor.  A  man  who  was  a  boy  at  the  time  gave  J.  H.  Beadle  the 
particulars  of  this  double  murder  as  he  received  it  from  the  person 
who  lighted  a  brazier  to  give  the  assassin  a  sure  aim.2  The  cor- 
oner's jury  the  next  day  found  that  the  men  shot  one  another  ! 

Soon  all  public  attention  throughout  the  country  was  centred 

1  "History  of  Utah,"  p.  573,  note.  2  "  Polygamy,"  p.  192. 


AFTER   THE   "WAR11  537 

in  the  coming  conflict  in  the  Southern  states.  In  May,  i860,  the 
troops  at  Camp  Floyd  departed  for  New  Mexico  and  Arizona,  only 
a  small  guard  being  left  under  command  of  Colonel  Cooke.  In 
May,  1 86 1,  Governor  dimming  left  Salt  Lake  City  for  the  east  so 
quietly  that  most  of  the  people  there  did  not  hear  of  his  departure 
until  they  read  it  in  the  local  newspapers.  He  soon  after  appeared 
in  Washington,  and  after  some  delay  obtained  a  pass  which  per- 
mitted his  passage  through  the  Confederate  lines.  When  the 
Southern  rebellion  became  a  certainty,  Colonel  Cooke  and  his  force 
were  ordered  to  march  to  the  East  in  the  autumn,  after  selling 
vast  quantities  of  stores  in  Camp  Floyd,  and  destroying  the  supplies 
and  ammunition  which  they  could  not  take  away.  Such  a  slaughter 
of  prices  as  then  occurred  was,  perhaps,  without  precedent.  It  was 
estimated  that  goods  costing  $4,000,000  brought  only  $100,000. 
Young  had  preached  non-intercourse  with  the  Gentile  merchants 
who  followed  the  army,  but  he  could  not  lose  so  great  an  oppor- 
tunity as  this,  when,  for  instance,  flour  costing  $28.40  per  sack 
sold  for  52  cents,  and  he  invested  $40,000.  "  For  years  after," 
says  Stenhouse,  "  the  '  regulation  blue  pants '  were  more  familiar 
to  the  eye,  in  the  Mormon  settlements,  than  the  Valley  Tan 
Quaker  gray." 

When  Governor  Cumming  left  the  territory,  the  secretary, 
Francis  H.  Wooton,  became  acting  governor.  He  made  himself 
very  offensive  to  the  administration  at  Washington,  and  President 
Lincoln  appointed  Frank  Fuller,  of  New  Hampshire,  secretary  of 
the  territory  in  his  place,  and  Mr.  Fuller  proceeded  at  once  to 
Salt  Lake  City,  where  he  became  acting  governor.  Later  in  the 
year  the  other  federal  offices  in  Utah  were  filled  by  the  appoint- 
ment of  John  W.  Dawson,  of  Indiana,  as  governor,  John  F.  Kin- 
ney as  chief  justice,  and  R.  P.  Flenniken  and  J.  R.  Crosby  as 
associate  justices. 

The  selection  of  Dawson  as  governor  was  something  more  than 
a  political  mistake.  He  was  the  editor  and  publisher  of  a  party 
newspaper  at  Fort  Wayne,  Indiana,  a  man  of  bad  morals,  and  a 
meddler  in  politics,  who  gave  the  Republican  managers  in  his  state 
a  great  deal  of  trouble.  The  undoubted  fact  seems  to  be  that  he 
was  sent  out  to  Utah  on  the  recommendation  of  Indiana  politicians 
of  high  rank,  who  wanted  to  get  rid  of  him,  and  who  gave  no 
attention  whatever  to  the  requirements  of  his  office. 


538  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

Arriving  at  his  post  early  in  December,  1861,  the  new  governor 
incurred  the  ill  will  of  the  Mormons  almost  immediately  by  veto- 
ing a  bill  for  a  state  convention  passed  by  the  territorial  legislature, 
and  a  memorial  to  Congress  in  favor  of  the  admission  of  the  terri- 
tory as  a  state  (which  Acting  Governor  Fuller  approved).  They 
were  very  glad,  therefore,  to  take  advantage  of  any  mistake  he 
might  make ;  and  he  almost  at  once  gave  them  their  opportunity, 
by  making  improper  advances  to  a  woman  whom  he  had  employed 
to  do  some  work.  She,  as  Dawson  expressed  it  to  one  of  his 
colleagues,  "  was  fool  enough  to  tell  of  it,"  and  Dawson,  learning 
immediately  that  the  Mormons  meditated  a  severe  vengeance,  at 
once  made  preparations  for  his  departure. 

The  Deseret  News  of  January  1,  1862,  in  an  editorial  on  the 
departure  of  the  governor,  said  that  for  eight  or  ten  days  he  had 
been  confined  to  his  room  and  reported  insane ;  that,  when  he  left, 
he  took  with  him  his  physician  and  four  guards,  "to  each  of  whom, 
as  reported  last  evening,  $100  is  promised  in  the  event  that  they 
guard  him  faithfully,  and  prevent  his  being  killed  or  becoming 
qualified  for  the  office  of  chamberlain  in  the  King's  palace,  till  he 
shall  have  arrived  at  and  passed  the  eastern  boundary  of  the  ter- 
ritory." After  indicating  that  he  had  committed  an  offence  against 
a  lady  which,  under  the  common  law,  if  enforced,  "  would  have 
caused  him  to  have  bitten  the  dust,"  the  News  added:  "Why  he 
selected  the  individuals  named  for  his  bodyguard  no  one  with 
whom  we  have  conversed  has  been  able  to  determine.  That  they 
will  do  him  justice,  and  see  him  safely  out  of  the  territory,  there 
can  be  no  doubt." 

The  hints  thus  plainly  given  were  carried  out.  Beadle's  ac- 
count says,  "  He  was  waylaid  in  Weber  Canon,  and  received 
shocking  and  almost  emasculating  injuries  from  three  Mormon 
lads."  *  Stenhouse  says  :  "  He  was  dreadfully  maltreated  by  some 
Mormon  rowdies  who  assumed,  'for  the  fun  of  the  thing,'  to  be 
the  avengers  of  an  alleged  insult.  Governor  Dawson  had  been 
betrayed  into  an  offence,  and  his  punishment  was  heavy."  2  Mrs. 
Waite  says  that  the  Mormons  laid  a  trap  for  the  governor,  as  they 
had  done  for  Steptoe  ;  but  the  evidence  indicates  that,  in  Dawson's 
case,  the  victim  was  himself  to  blame  for  the  opportunity  he  gave. 

Stenhouse  says  that  the  Mormon  authorities  were  very  angry 

1  "Polygamy,"  p.  195.  2  "Rocky  Mountain  Saints,"  p.  592. 


AFTER    THE    "WAR" 


539 


because  of  the  aggravated  character  of  the  punishment  dealt  out 
to  the  governor,  as  they  simply  wanted  him  sent  away  disgraced, 
and  that  they  had  all  his  assailants  shot.  This  is  practically  con- 
firmed by  the  Mormon  historian  Whitney,  who  says  that  one  of  the 
assailants  was  a  relative  of  the  woman  insulted,  and  the  others 
"  merely  drunken  desperadoes  and  robbers  who,"  he  explains, 
"  were  soon  afterward  arrested  for  their  cowardly  and  brutal  as- 
sault upon  the  fleeing  official.  One  of  them,  Lot  Huntington,  was 
shot  by  Deputy  Sheriff  O.  P.  Rockwell  [so  often  Young's  instru- 
ment in  such  cases]  on  January  16,  in  Rush  Valley,  while  attempt- 
ing to  escape  from  the  officers,  and  two  others,  John  P.  Smith  and 
Moroni  Clawson,  were  killed  during  a  similar  attempt  next  day  by 
the  police  of  Salt  Lake  City.  Their  confederates  were  tried  and 
duly  punished."1 

The  departure  of  Governor  Dawson  left  the  executive  office 
again  in  charge  of  Secretary  Fuller.  Early  in  1862  the  Indians 
threatened  the  overland  mail  route,  and  Fuller,  having  received 
instruction  from  Montgomery  Blair  to  keep  the  route  open  at  all 
hazards,  called  for  thirty  men  to  serve  for  thirty  days.  These  were 
supplied  by  the  Mormons.  In  the  following  April,  the  Indian 
troubles  continuing,  Governor  Fuller,  Chief  Justice  Kinney,  and 
officers  of  the  Overland  Mail  and  Pacific  Telegraph  Companies 
united  in  a  letter  to  Secretary  Stanton  asking  that  Superintendent 
of  Indian  Affairs  Doty  be  authorized  to  raise  a  regiment  of  mounted 
rangers  in  the  territory,  with  officers  appointed  by  him,  to  keep 
open  communication.  These  petitioners,  observes  Tullidge,  "  had 
overrated  the  federal  power  in  Utah,  as  embodied  in  them- 
selves, for  such  a  service,  when  they  overlooked  ex-Governor 
Young  "  and  others.2  Young  had  no  intention  of  permitting  any 
kind  of  a  federal  force  to  supplant  his  Legion.  He  at  once  tele- 
graphed to  the  Utah  Delegate  in  Washington  that  the  Utah  militia 
(alias  Nauvoo  Legion)  were  competent  to  furnish  the  necessary 
protection.  As  a  result  of  this  presentation  of  the  matter,  Adjutant 
General  L.  L.  Thomas,  on  April  28,  addressed  a  reply  to  the  peti- 
tion for  protection,  not  to  any  of  the  federal  officers  in  Utah,  but 
to  "  Mr.  Brigham  Young,"  saying,  "  By  express  direction  of  the 
President  of  the  United  States  you  are  hereby  authorized  to  raise, 

1  "  History  of  Utah,"  Vol.  II,  p.  38. 

2  Tullidge's  "  History  of  Salt  Lake  City,"  p.  252. 


540  THE    STORY    OF   THE    MORMONS 

arm,  and  equip  one  company  of  cavalry  for  ninety  days'  service."  ! 
The  order  for  carrying  out  these  instructions  was  placed  by  the 
head  of  the  Nauvoo  Legion,  "General"  Wells — who  ordered  the 
burning  of  the  government  trains  in  1857  —  m  tne  hands  of  Major 
Lot  Smith,  who  carried  out  that  order ! 

Judges  Flenniken  and  Crosby  took  their  departure  from  the 
territory  a  month  later  than  Dawson,  and  Thomas  J.  Drake  of 
Michigan  and  Charles  B.  Waite  of  Illinois2  were  named  as  their 
successors,  and  on  March  31  Stephen  S.  Harding  of  Milan,  Indiana, 
a  lawyer,  was  appointed  governor.  The  new  officers  arrived  in 
July.  ' 

At  this  time  the  Mormons  were  again  seeking  admission  for 
the  State  of  Deseret.  They  had  had  a  constitution  prepared  for 
submission  to  Congress,  had  nominated  Young  for  governor  and 
Kimball  for  lieutenant  governor,  and  the  legislature,  in  advance, 
had  chosen  W.  H.  Hooper  and  George  Q.  Cannon  the  United 
States  senators.  But  Utah  was  not  then  admitted,  while,  on  the 
other  hand,  an  anti-polygamy  bill  (to  be  described  later)  was  passed, 
and  signed  by  President  Lincoln  on  July  2. 

During  the  month  preceding  the  arrival  of  Governor  Harding, 
another  tragedy  had  been  enacted  in  the  territory.  Among  the 
church  members  was  a  Welshman  named  Joseph  Morris,  who 
became  possessed  of  the  belief  (which,  as  we  have  seen,  had 
afflicted  brethren  from  time  to  time)  that  he  was  the  recipient 
of  "  revelations."  One  of  these  "  revelations "  having  directed 
him  to  warn  Young  that  he  was  wandering  from  the  right  course, 
he  did  this  in  person,  and  received  a  rebuke  so  emphatic  that  it 
quite  overcame  him.  He  betook  himself,  therefore,  to  a  place 
called  Kington  Fort,  on  the  Weber  River,  thirty-five  miles  north 
of  Salt  Lake  City,  and  there  he  found  believers  in  his  prophetic 
gifts  in  the  local  Bishop,  and  quite  a  settlement  of  men  and  women, 
almost  all  foreigners.  Young's  refusal  to  satisfy  the  demand  for 
published  "revelations"  gave  some  standing  to  a  fanatic  like 
Morris,  who  professed  to  supply  that  long-felt  want,  and  he  was 

1  Vol.  II,  Series  3,  p.  27,  War  of  the  Rebellion,  official  records. 

2  After  leaving  Utah  Judge  Waite  was  appointed  district  attorney  for  Idaho,  was 
elected  to  Congress,  and  published  "  A  History  of  the  Christian  Religion,"  and  other 
books.  His  wife,  author  of  "The  Mormon  Prophet,"  was  a  graduate  of  Oberlin  College 
and  of  the  Union  College  of  Law  in  Chicago,  a  member  of  the  Illinois  bar,  founder 
of  the  Chicago  Law  Times,  and  manager  of  the  publishing  firm  of  C.  W.  Waite  &  Co. 


AFTER   THE   "WAR"  54! 

so  prolific  in  his  gift  that  three  clerks  were  required  to  write 
down  what  was  revealed  to  him.  Among  his  announcements 
were  the  date  of  the  coming  of  Christ  and  the  necessity  of  "  con- 
secrating "  their  property  in  a  common  fund.  Having  made  a 
mistake  in  the  date  selected  for  Christ's  appearance,  the  usual 
apostates  sprang  up,  and,  when  they  took  their  departure,  they 
claimed  the  right  to  carry  with  them  their  share  of  the  common 
effects.  In  the  dispute  that  ensued,  the  apostates  seized  some 
Morrisite  grain  on  the  way  to  mill,  and  the  Morrisites  captured 
some  apostates,  and  took  them  prisoners  to  Kington  Fort. 

Out  of  these  troubles  came  the  issue  of  a  writ  by  Judge  Kinney 
for  the  release  of  the  prisoners,  the  defiance  of  this  writ  by  the 
Morrisites,  and  a  successful  appeal  to  the  governor  for  the  use 
of  the  militia  to  enable  the  marshal  to  enforce  the  writ.  On  the 
morning  of  June  13  the  Morrisites  discovered  an  armed  force,  in 
command  of  General  R.  T.  Burton,  the  marshal's  chief  deputy,  on 
the  mountain  that  overlooked  their  settlement,  and  received  from 
Burton  an  order  to  surrender  in  thirty  minutes.  Morris  announced 
a  "  revelation,"  declaring  that  the  Lord  would  not  allow  his  people 
to  be  destroyed.  When  the  thirty  minutes  had  expired,  without 
further  warning  the  Mormon  force  fired  on  the  Morrisites  with  a 
cannon,  killing  two  women  outright,  and  sending  the  others  to 
cover.  But  the  devotees  were  not  weak-hearted.  For  three  days 
they  kept  up  a  defence,  and  it  was  not  until  their  ammunition  was 
exhausted  that  they  raised  a  white  flag.  When  Burton  rode  into 
their  settlement  and  demanded  Morris's  surrender,  that  fanatic 
replied,  "  Never."  Burton  at  once  shot  him  dead,  and  then  badly 
wounded  John  Banks,  an  English  convert  and  a  preacher  of  elo- 
quence, who  had  joined  Morris  after  rebelling  against  Young's 
despotism.  Banks  died  "  suddenly "  that  evening.  Burton  fin- 
ished his  work  by  shooting  two  women,  one  of  whom  dared  to 
condemn  his  shooting  of  Morris  and  Banks,  and  the  other  for 
coming  up  to  him  crying.1 

The  bodies  of  Morris  and  Banks  were  carried  to  Salt  Lake 
City  and  exhibited  there.  No  one  —  President  of  the  church  or 
federal  officer  —  took  any  steps  at  that  time  to  bring  their  mur- 
derers to  justice.     Sixteen  years  later  District  Attorney  Van  Zile 

1  For  accounts  of  this  slaughter,  see  "  Rocky  Mountain  Saints,"  pp.  593-606,  and 
Beadle's  "Life  in  Utah,"  pp.  413-420. 


542  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

tried  Burton  for  this  massacre,  but  the  verdict  was  acquittal,  as  it 
has  been  in  all  these  famous  cases  except  that  of  John  D.  Lee. 

Ninety-three  Morrisites,  few  of  whom  could  speak  English, 
were  arraigned  before  Judge  Kinney  and  placed  under  bonds. 
In  the  following  March  seven  of  the  Morrisites  were  convicted 
of  killing  members  of  the  posse,  and  sentenced  by  Judge  Kinney 
to  imprisonment  for  from  five  to  fifteen  years  each,  while  sixty-six 
others  were  fined  $100  each  for  resisting  the  posse.  Governor 
Harding  immediately  pardoned  all  the  accused,  in  response  to  a 
numerously  signed  petition.  Beadle  says  that  Bishop  Wooley 
advised  the  governor  to  be  careful  about  granting  these  pardons, 
as  "  our  people  feel  it  would  be  an  outrage,  and  if  it  is  done,  they 
might  proceed  to  violence "  ;  but  that  Bill  Hickman,  the  Danite 
captain,  rode  thirty  miles  to  sign  the  petition,  saying  that  he  was 
"one  Mormon  who  was  not  afraid  to  sign."  The  grand  jury  that 
had  indicted  the  Morrisites  made  a  presentment  to  Judge  Kinney, 
in  which  they  said,  "We  present  his  Excellency  Stephen  S.  Hard- 
ing, governor  of  Utah,  as  we  would  an  unsafe  bridge  over  a  dan- 
gerous stream,  jeopardizing  the  lives  of  all  those  who  pass  over 
it ;  or  as  we  would  a  pestiferous  cesspool  in  our  district,  breathing 
disease  and  death."  And  the  chief  justice  assured  this  jury  that 
they  addressed  him  "  in  no  spirit  of  malice,"  and  asked  them  to 
accept  his  thanks  "for  your  cooperation  in  the  support  of  my 
efforts  to  maintain  and  enforce  the  law."  It  is  to  the  credit  of 
the  powers  at  Washington  that  this  judge  was  soon  afterward 
removed.1 

1  Even  the  Mormon  historian  has  only  this  to  say  on  this  subject,  "  Of  the  relative 
merit  or  demerit  of  the  action  of  the  United  States  and  territorial  authorities  concerned 
in  the  Morrisite  affair  the  historian  does  not  presume  to  touch,  further  than  to  present 
the  record  itself  and  its  significance."  —  Tullidge,  "  History  of  Salt  Lake  City,"  p.  320. 


CHAPTER   XVIII 

ATTITUDE    OF     THE     MORMONS     DURING    THE    SOUTHERN 

REBELLION 

The  attitude  of  the  Mormons  toward  the  government  at  the 
outbreak  of  hostilities  with  the  Southern  states  was  distinctly  dis- 
loyal. The  Deseret  News  of  January  2,  1861,  said,  "The  indica- 
tions are  that  the  breach  which  has  been  effected  between  the 
North  and  South  will  continue  to  widen,  and  that  two  or  more 
nations  will  be  formed  out  of  the  fragmentary  portions  of  the  once 
glorious  republic."  The  Mormons  in  England  had  before  that 
been  told  in  the  Millennial  Star  (January  28,  i860)  that  "the  Union 
is  now  virtually  destroyed."  The  sermons  in  Salt  Lake  City  were 
of  the  same  character.  "  General "  Wells  told  the  people  on 
April  6,  1 86 1,  that  the  general  government  was  responsible  for 
their  expulsion  from  Missouri  and  Illinois,  adding:  "So  far  as  we 
are  concerned,  we  should  have  been  better  without  a  government 
than  such  a  one.  I  do  not  think  there  is  a  more  corrupt  govern- 
ment upon  the  face  of  the  earth."  x  Brigham  Young  on  the  same 
day  said  :  "  Our  present  President,  what  is  his  strength  ?  It  is  like 
a  rope  of  sand,  or  like  a  rope  made  of  water.  He  is  as  weak  as 
water.  ...  I  feel  disgraced  in  having  been  born  under  a  govern- 
ment that  has  so  little  power,  disposition  and  influence  for  truth 
and  right.  Shame,  shame  on  the  rulers  of  this  nation.  I  feel 
myself  disgraced  to  hail  such  men  as  my  countrymen."  2 

Elder  G.  A.  Smith,  on  the  same  occasion,  railing  against  the 
non-Mormon  clergy,  said,  "  Mr.  Lincoln  now  is  put  into  power  by 
that  priestly  influence ;  and  the  presumption  is,  should  he  not  find 
his  hands  full  by  the  secession  of  the  Southern  States,  the  spirit 
of  priestly  craft  would  force  him,  in  spite  of  his  good  wishes  and 

1  Journal  of  Discourses,  Vol.  VIII,  pp.  373-374.  2  Ibid.,  Vol.  IX,  p.  4. 

543 


544  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

intentions,  to  put  to  death,  if  it  was  in  his  power,  every  man  that 
believes  in  the  divine  mission  of  Joseph  Smith."  l  On  August  31, 
1862,  Young  quoted  Smith's  prediction  of  a  rebellion  beginning 
in  South  Carolina,  and  declared  that  "the  nation  that  has  slain  the 
prophet  of  God  will  be  broken  in  pieces  like  a  potter's  vessel," 
boasting  that  the  Mormon  government  in  Utah  was  "  the  best 
earthly  government  that  was  ever  framed  by  man." 

Tullidge,  discussing  in  1876  the  attitude  of  the  Mormon  church 
toward  the  South,  said  :  — 

"  With  the  exception  of  the  slavery  question  and  the  policy  of  secession,  the 
South  stood  upon  the  same  ground  that  Utah  had  stood  upon  just  previously.  .  .  . 
And  here  we  reach  the  heart  of  the  Mormon  policy  and  aims.  Secession  is 
not  in  it.  Their  issues  are  all  inside  the  Union.  The  Mormon  prophecy  is  that 
that  people  are  destined  to  save  the  Union  and  preserve  the  constitution.  .  .  . 
The  North,  which  had  just  risen  to  power  through  the  triumph  of  the  Republican 
party,  occupied  the  exact  position  toward  the  South  that  Buchanan's  administra- 
tion had  held  toward  Utah.  And  the  salient  points  of  resemblance  between  the 
two  cases  were  so  striking  that  Utah  and  the  South  became  radically  associated 
in  the  Chicago  platform  that  brought  the  Republican  party  into  office.  Slavery 
and  polygamy — these  'twin  relics  of  barbarism'  —  were  made  the  two  chief 
planks  of  the  party  platform.  Yet  neither  of  these  were  the  real  ground  of  the 
contest.  It  continues  still,  and  some  of  the  soundest  men  of  the  times  believe 
that  it  will  be  ultimately  referred  in  a  revolution  so  general  that  nearly  every  man 
in  America  will  become  involved  in  the  action.  .  .  .  The  Mormon  view  of  the 
great  national  controversy,  then,  is  that  the  Southern  States  should  have  done 
precisely  what  Utah  did,  and  placed  themselves  on  the  defensive  ground  of  their 
rights  and  institutions  as  old  as  the  Union.  Had  they  placed  themselves  under 
the  political  leadership  of  Brigham  Young,  they  would  have  triumphed,  for  their 
cause  was  fundamentally  right ;  their  secession  alone  was  the  national  crime."2 

Knowledge  of  the  spirit  which  animated  the  Saints  induced  the 
Secretary  of  War  to  place  them  under  military  supervision,  and  in 
May,  1862,  the  Third  California  Infantry  and  a  part  of  the  Second 
California  Cavalry  were  ordered  to  Utah.  The  commander  of  this 
force  was  Colonel  P.  E.  Connor,  who  had  a  fine  record  in  the  Mexi- 
can War,  and  who  was  among  the  first,  at  the  outbreak  of  the  Re- 
bellion, to  tender  his  services  to  the  government  in  California,  where 
he  was  then  engaged  in  business.  On  assuming  command  of  the 
military  district  of  Utah,  which  included  Utah  and  Nevada,  Colonel 

1  Journal  of  Discourses,  Vol.  IX,  p.  18. 

2  Tullidge's  "  Life  of  Brigham  Young,"  Chap.  24. 


DURING   THE   SOUTHERN   REBELLION  545 

Connor  issued  an  order  directing  commanders  of  posts,  camps,  and 
detachments  to  arrest  and  imprison,  until  they  took  the  oath  of  al- 
legiance, "  all  persons  who  from  this  date  shall  be  guilty  of  uttering 
treasonable  sentiments  against  the  government,"  adding,  "  Traitors 
shall  not  utter  treasonable  sentiments  in  this  district  with  impunity, 
but  must  seek  some  more  genial  soil,  or  receive  the  punishment 
they  so  richly  deserve." 

When  Connor's  force  arrived  at  Fort  Crittenden  (the  Camp 
Floyd  of  General  Johnston),  the  Mormons  supposed  that  it  would 
make  its  camp  there.  Persons  having  a  pecuniary  interest  in  the 
reoccupation  of  the  old  site,  where  they  wanted  to  sell  to  the  gov- 
ernment the  buildings  they  had  bought  for  a  song,  tried  hard  to  in- 
duce Colonel  Connor  to  accept  their  view,  even  warning  him  of 
armed  Mormon  opposition  to  his  passage  through  Salt  Lake  City. 
But  he  was  not  a  man  to  be  thus  deterred.  Among  the  rumors  that 
reached  him  was  one  that  Bill  Hickman,  the  Danite  chief,  was  of- 
fering to  bet  $500  in  Salt  Lake  City  that  the  colonel  could  not  cross 
the  river  Jordan.  Colonel  Connor  is  said  to  have  sent  back  the 
reply  that  he  "  would  cross  the  river  Jordan  if  hell  yawned  below 
him." 

On  Saturday,  October  18,  Connor  marched  twenty  miles  toward 
the  Mormon  capital,  and  the  next  day  crossed  the  Jordan  at  2  p.m., 
without  finding  a  person  in  sight  on  the  eastern  shore.  The  com- 
mand, knowing  that  the  Nauvoo  Legion  outnumbered  them  vastly, 
and  ignorant  of  the  real  intention  of  the  Mormon  leaders,  advanced 
with  every  preparation  to  meet  resistance.  They  were,  as  an  ac- 
companying correspondent  expressed  it,  "  six  hundred  miles  of  sand 
from  reinforcements."  The  conciliatory  policy  of  so  many  federal 
officers  in  Utah  would  have  induced  Colonel  Connor  to  march 
quietly  around  the  city,  and  select  some  place  for  his  camp  where 
it  would  not  offend  Mormon  eyes.  What  he  did  do  was  to  halt  his 
command  when  the  city  was  two  miles  distant,  form  his  column 
with  an  advance  guard  of  cavalry  and  a  light  battery,  the  infantry 
and  commissary  wagons  coming  next,  and  in  this  order,  to  the  be- 
wilderment of  the  Mormon  authorities,  march  into  the  principal 
street,  with  his  two  bands  playing,  to  Emigrants'  Square,  and  so  to 
Governor  Harding's  residence. 

The  only  United  States  flag  displayed  on  any  building  that  day 
was  the  governor's.    The  sidewalks  were  packed  with  men,  women, 

2N 


546  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

and  children,  but  not  a  cheer  was  heard.  In  front  of  the  governor's 
residence  the  battalion  was  formed  in  two  lines,  and  the  governor, 
standing  in  the  buggy  in  which  he  had  ridden  out  to  meet  them, 
addressed  them,  saying  that  their  mission  was  one  of  peace  and 
security,  and  urging  them  to  maintain  the  strictest  discipline.  The 
troops,  Colonel  Connor  leading,  gave  three  cheers  for  the  country 
and  the  flag,  and  three  for  Governor  Harding,  and  then  took  up 
their  march  to  the  slope  at  the  base  of  Wahsatch  Mountain,  where 
the  Camp  Douglas  of  to-day  is  situated.  This  camp  was  in  sight  of 
the  Mormon  city,  and  Young's  residence  was  in  range  of  its  guns. 
Thus  did  Brigham's  will  bend  before  the  quiet  determination  of  a 
government  officer  who  respected  his  government's  dignity. 

But  the  Mormon  spirit  was  to  be  still  further  tested.  On  De- 
cember 8  Governor  Harding  read  his  first  message  to  the  territorial 
legislature.  It  began  with  a  tribute  to  the  industry  and  enterprise 
of  the  people ;  spoke  of  the  progress  of  the  war,  and  of  the  appli- 
cation of  the  territory  for  statehood,  and  in  this  connection  said, 
"  I  am  sorry  to  say  that  since  my  sojourn  amongst  you  I  have 
heard  no  sentiments,  either  publicly  or  privately  expressed,  that 
would  lead  me  to  believe  that  much  sympathy  is  felt  by  any  con- 
siderable number  of  your  people  in  favor  of  the  government  of  the 
United  States,  now  struggling  for  its  very  existence."  He  declared 
that  the  demand  for  statehood  should  not  be  entertained  unless  it 
was  "  clearly  shown  that  there  is  a  sufficient  population"  and  "that 
the  people  are  loyal  to  the  federal  government  and  the  laws."  He 
recommended  the  taking  of  a  correct  census  to  settle  the  question 
of  population. 

All  these  utterances  were  gall  and  wormwood  to  a  body  of  Mor- 
mon lawmakers,  but  worse  was  to  come.  Congress  having  passed 
an  act  "  to  prevent  and  punish  the  practice  of  polygamy  in  the  ter- 
ritories," the  governor  naturally  considered  it  his  duty  to  call  atten- 
tion to  the  matter.  Prevising  that  he  desired  to  do  so  "  in  no 
offensive  manner  or  unkind  spirit,"  he  pointed  out  that  the  practice 
was  founded  on  no  territorial  law,  resting  merely  on  custom  ;  and 
laid  down  the  principle  that  "  no  community  can  happily  exist  with 
an  institution  so  important  as  that  of  marriage  wanting  in  all  those 
qualities  that  make  it  homogeneal  with  institutions  and  laws  of 
neighboring  civilized  countries  having  the  same  spirit."  He  spoke 
of  the  marriage  of  a  mother  and  her  daughter  to  the  same  man  as 


DURING   THE    SOUTHERN    REBELLION  547 

"  no  less  a  marvel  in  morals  than  in  matters  of  taste,"  and  warned 
them  against  following  the  recommendation  of  high  church  author- 
ities that  the  federal  law  be  disregarded.  This  message,  according 
to  the  Mormon  historian,  was  "  an  insult  offered  to  their  representa- 
tives."1 

These  representatives  resented  the  "insult  "  by  making  no  ref- 
erence in  the  journal  to  the  reading  of  the  message,  and  by  failing 
to  have  it  printed.  When  this  was  made  known  in  Washington, 
the  Senate,  on  January  16,  1863,  called  for  a  report  by  the  Commit- 
tee on  Territories  concerning  the  suppression  of  the  message,  and 
they  got  one  from  its  chairman,  Benjamin  Wade,  pointing  out  that 
Utah  Territory  was  in  the  control  of  "a  sort  of  Jewish  theocracy," 
affording  "the  first  exhibition,  within  the  limits  of  the  United  States, 
of  a  church  ruling  the  state,"  and  declaring  that  the  governor's 
message  contained  "  nothing  that  should  give  offence  to  any  legis- 
lature willing  to  be  governed  by  the  laws  of  morality,"  closing  with 
a  recommendation  that  the  message  be  printed  by  Congress.  The 
territorial  legislature  adjourned  on  January  16  without  sending  to 
Governor  Harding  for  his  approval  a  single  appropriation  bill,  and 
the  next  day  the  so-called  legislature  of  the  State  of  Deseret  met 
and  received  a  message  from  the  state  governor,  Brigham  Young. 

Next  the  new  federal  judges  came  under  Mormon  displeasure. 
We  have  seen  the  conflict  of  jurisdiction  existing  between  the 
federal  and  the  so-called  probate  courts  and  their  officers.  Judge 
Waite  perceived  the  difficulties  thus  caused  as  soon  as  he  entered 
upon  his  duties,  and  he  sent  to  Washington  an  act  giving  the 
United  States  marshal  authority  to  select  juries  for  the  federal 
courts,  taking  from  the  probate  courts  jurisdiction  in  civil  actions, 
and  leaving  them  a  limited  criminal  jurisdiction  subject  to  appeal 
to  the  federal  court,  and  providing  for  a  reorganization  of  the 
militia  under  the  federal  governor.  Bernhisel  and  Hooper  sent 
home  immediate  notice  of  the  arrival  of  this  bill  in  Washington. 

Now,  indeed,  it  was  time  for  Brigham  to  "bend  his  finger."  If 
a  governor  could  openly  criticise  polygamy,  and  a  judge  seek  to 
undermine  Young's  legal  and  military  authority,  without  a  protest, 
his  days  of  power  were  certainly  drawing  to  a  close.  Accordingly, 
a  big  mass-meeting  was  held  in  Salt  Lake  City  on  March  3,  1863, 
"  for  the  purpose  of  investigating  certain  acts  of  several  of  the  United 

1  Tullidge's  "  History  of  Salt  Lake  City,"  p.  305. 


548  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

States  officials  in  the  territory."  Speeches  were  made  by  John  Tay- 
lor and  Young,  in  which  the  governor  and  judges  were  denounced.1 
A  committee  was  appointed  to  ask  the  governor  and  two  judges  to 
resign  and  leave  the  territory,  and  a  petition  was  signed  request- 
ing President  Lincoln  to  remove  them,  the  first  reason  stated  being 
that  "  they  are  strenuously  endeavoring  to  create  mischief,  and  stir 
up  strife  between  the  people  of  the  territory  and  the  troops  in 
Camp  Douglas."  The  meeting  then  adjourned,  the  band  playing 
the  "  Marseillaise." 

The  committee,  consisting  of  John  Taylor,  J.  Clinton,  and  Orson 
Pratt,  called  on  the  governor  and  the  judges  the  next  morning,  and 
met  with  a  flat  refusal  to  pay  any  attention  to  the  mandate  of  the 
meeting.  "You  may  go  back  and  tell  your  constituents,"  said 
Governor  Harding,  "that  I  will  not  resign  my  office,  and  will  not 
leave  this  territory,  until  it  shall  please  the  President  to  recall  me. 
I  will  not  be  driven  away.  I  may  be  in  danger  in  staying,  but  my 
purpose  is  fixed."  Judge  Drake  told  the  committee  that  he  had  a 
right  to  ask  Congress  to  pass  or  amend  any  law,  and  that  it  was  a 
special  insult  for  him,  a  citizen,  to  be  asked  by  Taylor,  a  foreigner, 
to  leave  any  part  of  the  Republic.  "  Go  back  to  Brigham  Young, 
your  master,"  said  he,  "that  embodiment  of  sin,  shame,  and  dis- 
gust, and  tell  him  that  I  neither  fear  him,  nor  love  him,  nor  hate 
him  —  that  I  utterly  despise  him.  Tell  him,  whose  tools  and  trick- 
sters you  are,  that  I  did  not  come  here  by  his  permission,  and  that 
I  will  not  go  away  at  his  desire  nor  by  his  direction.  ...  A  horse 
thief  or  a  murderer  has,  when  arrested,  a  right  to  speak  in  court ; 
and,  unless  in  such  capacity  or  under  such  circumstances,  don't 
you  even  dare  to  speak  to  me  again."  Judge  Waite  simply  declined 
to  resign  because  to  do  so  would  imply  "  either  that  I  was  sensible 
of  having  done  something  wrong,  or  that  I  was  afraid  to  remain  at 
my  post  and  perform  my  duty."  2 

As  soon  as  the  action  of  the  Mormon  mass-meeting  became 
known  at  Camp  Douglas,  all  the  commissioned  officers  there 
signed  a  counter  petition  to  President  Lincoln,  "  as  an  act  of  duty 
we  owe  our  government,"  declaring  that  the  charge  of  inciting 
trouble  between  the  people  and  the  troops  was  "a  base  and  un- 
qualified falsehood,"  that  the  accused  officers  had  been  "true  and 

1  Reported  in  Mrs.  Waite's  "  Mormon  Prophet,"  pp.  98-102. 

2  Text  of  replies  in  Mrs.  Waite's  "  Mormon  Prophet,"  pp.  107-109. 


DURING    THE    SOUTHERN    REBELLION  549 

faithful  to  the  government,"  and  that  there  was  no  good  reason 
for  their  removal. 

Excitement  in  Salt  Lake  City  now  ran  high.  Young,  in  a  vio- 
lent harangue  in  the  Tabernacle  on  March  8,  after  declaring  his 
loyalty  to  the  government,  said,  " '  Is  there  anything  that  could  be 
asked  that  we  would  not  do  ?  Yes.  Let  the  present  administra- 
tion ask  us  for  a  thousand  men,  or  even  five  hundred,  and  I'd  see 

them  d d  first,  and  then  they  could  not  have  them.      What 

do  you  think  of  that?'  (Loud  cries  of  'Good,  Good,'  and  great 
applause.)"  1 

Young  expected  arrest,  and  had  a  signal  arranged  by  which  the 
citizens  would  rush  to  his  support  if  this  was  attempted.  A  false 
alarm  of  this  kind  was  given  on  March  9,  and  in  an  hour  two  thou- 
sand armed  men  were  assembled  around  his  house.2  Steptoe,  who 
in  an  earlier  year  had  declined  the  governorship  of  the  territory  and 
petitioned  for  Young's  reappointment,  took  credit  for  what  followed 
in  an  article  in  the  Overland  Monthly  for  December,  1896.  Being 
at  Salt  Lake  City  at  the  time,  he  suggested  to  Wells  and  other 
leaders  that  they  charge  Young  with  the  crime  of  polygamy  before 
one  of  the  magistrates,  and  have  him  arraigned  and  admitted  to 
bail,  in  order  to  place  him  beyond  the  reach  of  the  military  officers. 
The  affidavit  was  sworn  to  before  the  compliant  Chief  Justice 
Kinney  by  Young's  private  secretary,  was  served  by  the  territorial 
marshal,  and  Young  was  released  in  $5000  bail.  Colonel  Connor 
was  informed  of  this  arrest  before  he  arrived  in  the  city,  and  re- 
traced his  steps ;  the  citizens  dispersed  to  their  homes ;  the  grand 
jury  found  no  indictment  against  Young,  and  in  due  time  he  was 
discharged  from  his  recognizance. 

"In  the  meantime,"  says  a  Mormon  chronicler,  "our  'outside' 
friends  in  this  city  telegraphed  to  those  interested  in  the  mail 3  and 

1  Correspondence  of  the  Chicago  Tribune. 

2  "  On  the  inside  of  the  high  walls  surrounding  Brigham's  premises  scaffolding  was 
hastily  erected  in  order  to  enable  the  militia  to  fire  down  upon  the  passing  volunteers. 
The  houses  on  the  route  which  occupied  a  commanding  position  where  an  attack  could 
be  made  upon  the  troops  were  taken  possession  of,  and  the  small  cannon  brought  out." 
—  "  Rocky  Mountain  Saints,"  p.  604. 

8  The  first  Pony  Express  left  Sacramento  and  St.  Joseph,  Missouri,  on  April  3,  i860. 
Major  General  M.  B.  Hazen  in  an  official  letter  dated  February,  1807  (House  Misc. 
Doc.  No.  75,  2d  Session,  39th  Congress),  said:  "Ben  Holiday  I  believe  to  be  the  only 
outsider  acceptable  to  those  people,  and  to  benefit  himself  I  believe  he  would  throw  the 
whole  weight  of  his  influence  in  favor  of  Mormonism.     By  the  terms  of  his  contract  to 


550  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

telegraph  lines  that  they  must  work  for  the  removal  of  the  troops, 
Governor  Harding,  and  Judges  Waite  and  Drake,  otherwise  there 
would  be  '  difficulty,'  and  the  mail  and  telegraph  lines  would  be 
destroyed.  Their  moneyed  interest  has  given  them  great  energy 
in  our  behalf."1  This  "work"  told.  Governor  Harding  was 
removed,  leaving  the  territory  on  June  II,  and,  as  proof  that  this 
was  due  to  "work"  and  not  to  his  own  incapacity,  he  was  made 
Chief  Justice  of  Colorado  Territory.2  With  him  were  displaced 
Chief  Justice  Kinney  and  Secretary  Fuller.3  Judges  Waite  and 
Drake  wrote  to  the  President  that  it  would  take  the  support  of 
five  thousand  men  to  make  the  federal  courts  in  Utah  effective. 
Waite  resigned  in  the  summer  of  1863.  Drake  remained,  but  his 
court  did  practically  no  business. 

Lincoln's  policy,  as  he  expressed  it  then,  was,  "  I  will  let  the 
Mormons  alone  if  they  will  let  me  alone."  4  He  had  war  enough 
on  his  hands  without  seeking  any  diversion  in  Utah.  J.  D.  Doty, 
the  superintendent  of  Indian  affairs,  succeeded  Harding  as  gov- 
ernor, Amos  Reed  of  Wisconsin  became  secretary,  and  John  Titus 
of  Philadelphia  chief  justice. 

Affairs  in  Utah  now  became  more  quiet.  General  Connor  (he 
was  made  a  brigadier  general  for  his  service  in  the  Bear  River 
Indian  campaign  in  1 862-1 863)  yielded  nothing  to  Mormon  threats 
or  demands.  A  periodical  called  the  Union  Vidette,  published  by 
his  force,  appeared  in  November,  1863,  and  in  it  was  printed  a 
circular  over  his  name,  expressing  belief  in  the  existence  of  rich 
veins  of  gold,  silver,  copper,  and  other  metals  in  the  territory,  and 
promising  the  fullest  protection  to  miners  and  prospectors;  and  the 
beginning  of  the  mining  interests  there  dated  from  the  picking  up 
of  a  piece  of  ore  by  a  lady  member  of  the  camp  while  attending  a 

carry  the  mails  from  the  Missouri  to  Utah,  all  papers  and  pamphlets  for  the  newsdealers, 
not  directed  to  subscribers,  are  thrown  out.  It  looks  very  much  like  a  scheme  to  keep 
light  out  of  that  country,  nowhere  so  much  needed." 

1  D.  O.  Calder's  letter  to  George  Q.  Cannon,  March  13,  1863,  in  Millennial  Star. 

2  "  Every  attempt  was  made  to  seduce  him  from  the  path  of  duty,  not  omitting 
the  same  appliances  which  had  been  brought  to  bear  upon  Steptoe  and  Dawson,  but  all 
in  vain." — "The  Mormon  Prophet,"  p.  109. 

8  Whitney,  the  Mormon  historian,  says  that  while  the  President  was  convinced  that 
Harding  was  not  the  right  man  for  the  place,  "  he  doubtless  believed  that  there  was 
more  or  less  truth  in  the  charges  of  '  subserviency '  to  Young  made  by  local  anti-Mor- 
mons against  Chief  Justice  Kinney  and  Secretary  Fuller.  He  therefore  removed  them 
as  well." — "  History  of  Utah,"  Vol.  II,  p.  103. 

4  Young's  letter  to  Cannon,  "  History  of  Salt  Lake  City,"  p.  325. 


DURING   THE   SOUTHERN   REBELLION  55 1 

picnic  party.  Although  the  Mormons  had  discouraged  mining  as 
calculated  to  cause  a  rush  of  non-Mormon  residents,  they  did  not 
show  any  special  resentment  to  the  general's  policy  in  this  respect. 
With  the  increasing  evidence  that  the  Union  cause  would  triumph, 
the  church  turned  its  face  toward  the  federal  government.  We 
find,  accordingly,  a  union  of  Mormons  and  Camp  Douglas  soldiers 
in  the  celebration  of  Union  victories  on  March  4,  1865,  with  a 
procession  and  speeches,  and,  when  General  Connor  left  to  assume 
command  of  the  Department  of  the  Platte,  a  ball  in  his  honor  was 
given  in  Salt  Lake  City ;  and  at  the  time  of  Lincoln's  assassination 
church  and  government  officers  joined  in  services  in  the  Taber- 
nacle, and  the  city  was  draped  in  mourning. 


CHAPTER   XIX 

EASTERN   VISITORS   TO   SALT   LAKE   CITY  — UNPUNISHED 
MURDERERS 

In  June,  1865,  a  distinguished  party  from  the  East  visited  Salt 
Lake  City,  and  their  visit  was  not  without  public  significance.  It 
included  Schuyler  Colfax,  Speaker  of  the  House  of  Representa- 
tives, Lieutenant  Governor  Bross  of  Illinois,  Samuel  Bowles, 
editor  of  the  Springfield  (Massachusetts)  Republican,  and  A.  D. 
Richardson  of  the  staff  of  the  New  York  Tribune.  Crossing  the 
continent  was  still  effected  by  stage-coach  at  that  time,  and  the 
Mormon  capital  had  never  been  visited  by  civilians  so  well  known 
and  so  influential.  Mr.  Colfax  had  stated  publicly  that  President 
Lincoln,  a  short  time  before  his  death,  had  asked  him  to  make  a 
thorough  investigation  of  territorial  matters,  and  his  visit  was  re- 
garded as  semiofficial.  The  city  council  formally  tendered  to  the 
visitors  the  hospitality  of  the  city,  and  Mr.  Bowles  wrote  that  the 
Speaker's  reception  "was  excessive  if  not  oppressive." 

In  an  interview  between  Colfax  and  Young,  during  which  the 
subject  of  polygamy  was  brought  up  by  the  latter,  he  asked  what 
the  government  intended  to  do  with  it,  now  that  the  slavery  ques- 
tion was  out  of  the  way.  Mr.  Colfax  replied  with  the  expression 
of  a  hope  that  the  prophets  of  the  church  would  have  a  new  "  rev- 
elation "  which  would  end  the  practice,  pointing  out  an  example  in 
the  course  of  Missouri  and  Maryland  in  abolishing  slavery,  with- 
out waiting  for  action  by  the  federal  government.  "  Mr.  Young," 
says  Bowles,  "  responded  quietly  and  frankly  that  he  should  read- 
ily welcome  such  a  revelation ;  that  polygamy  was  not  in  the  orig- 
inal book  of  the  Mormons ;  that  it  was  not  an  essential  practice  in 
the  church,  but  only  a  privilege  and  a  duty,  under  special  com- 
mand of  God."1 

It  is  worth  while  to  note  Mr.  Bowles's  summing  up  of  his  ob- 

1  "Across  the  Continent,"  p.  III. 
552 


EASTERN   VISITORS   TO   SALT   LAKE   CITY  553 

servations  of  Mormondom  during  this  visit.  "  The  result,"  he 
wrote,  "  of  the  whole  experience  has  been  to  increase  my  appre- 
ciation of  the  value  of  their  material  progress  and  development  to 
the  nation ;  to  evoke  congratulations  to  them  and  to  the  country 
for  the  wealth  they  have  created,  and  the  order,  frugality,  morality 
(sic),  and  industry  they  have  organized  in  this  remote  spot  in  our 
continent ;  to  excite  wonder  at  the  perfection  of  their  church  sys- 
tem, the  extent  of  its  ramifications,  the  sweep  of  its  influence,  and 
to  enlarge  my  respect  for  the  personal  sincerity  and  character  of 
many  of  the  leaders  in  the  organization."  1  These  were  the  expres- 
sions of  a  leading  journalist,  thought  worthy  to  be  printed  later  in 
book  form,  on  a  church  system  and  church  officers  about  which 
he  had  gathered  his  information  during  a  few  hours'  visit,  and  con- 
cerning which  he  was  so  fundamentally  ignorant  that  he  called 
their  Bible  —  whose  title  is,  "  Book  of  Mormon"  —  "book  of  the 
Mormons!"  It  is  reasonably  certain  that  he  had  never  read 
Smith's  "revelations,"  doubtful  if  he  was  acquainted  with  even 
the  framework  of  the  Mormon  Bible,  and  probable  that  he  was 
wholly  ignorant  of  the  history  of  their  recent  "  Reformation." 
Many  a  profound  opinion  of  Mormonism  has  been  founded  on  as 
little  opportunity  for  accurate  knowledge.2 

The  Eastern  visitors  soon  learned,  however,  how  little  intention 
the  Mormon  leaders  had  to  be  cajoled  out  of  polygamy.  Before 
Mr.  Bowles's  book  was  published,  he  had  to  add  a  supplement,  in 
which  he  explained  that  "since  our  visit  to  Utah  in  June,  the 
leaders  among  the  Mormons  have  repudiated  their  professions  of 
loyalty  to  the  government,  and  denied  any  disposition  to  yield  the 
issue  of  polygamy."  Tullidge  sneers  at  Colfax  "for  entertaining 
for  a  while  the  pretty  plan "  of  having  the  Mormons  give  up 
polygamy  as  the  Missourians  did  slavery.  The  Deseret  News,  soon 
after  the  Colfax  party  left  the  territory,  expressed  the  real  Mormon 
view  on  this  subject,  saying  :  — 

1  "Across  the  Continent,"  p.  106. 

2  As  another  illustration  of  the  value  of  observations  by  such  transient  students 
may  be  cited  the  following,  from  Sir  Charles  Wentworth  Dilke's  "  Greater  Britain,"  Vol. 
I,  p.  148:  "  Brigham's  deeds  have  been  those  of  a  sincere  man.  His  bitterest  opponents 
cannot  dispute  the  fact  that,  in  1844,  when  Nauvoo  was  about  to  be  deserted  owing  to 
attacks  by  a  ruffianly  mob,  Brigham  Young  rushed  to  the  front  and  took  command.  To 
be  a  Mormon  leader  was  then  to  be  the  leader  of  an  outcast  people,  with  a  price  set  on 
his  head,  in  a  Missouri  country  in  which  almost  every  man  who  was  not  a  Mormon  was 
by  profession  an  assassin." 


554  THE   STORY    OF   THE   MORMONS 

"  As  a  people  we  view  every  revelation  from  the  Lord  as  sacred.  Polygamy 
was  none  of  our  seeking.  It  came  to  us  from  Heaven,  and  we  recognized  it,  and 
still  do,  the  voice  of  Him  whose  right  it  is  not  only  to  teach  us,  but  to  dictate 
and  teach  all  men.  .  .  .  They  [Gentiles]  talk  of  revelations  given,  and  of  receiv- 
ing counter  revelations  to  forbid  what  has  been  commanded,  as  if  man  was  the 
sole  author,  originator,  and  designer  of  them.  ...  Do  they  wish  to  brand  a 
whole  people  with  the  foul  stigma  of  hypocrisy,  who,  from  their  leaders  to  the 
last  converts  that  have  made  the  dreary  journey  to  these  mountain  wilds  for 
their  faith,  have  proved  their  honesty  of  purpose  and  deep  sincerity  of  faith  by 
the  most  sublime  sacrifices?  Either  that  is  the  issue  of  their  reasoning,  or  they 
imagine  that  we  serve  and  worship  the  most  accommodating  Deity  ever  dreamed 
of  in  the  wildest  vagaries  of  the  most  savage  polytheist." 

This  was  a  perfectly  consistent  statement  of  the  Mormon  posi- 
tion, a  simple  elaboration  of  Young's  declaration  that,  to  give  up 
belief  in  Smith  as  a  prophet,  and  in  his  "  revelations,"  would  be  to 
give  up  their  faith.  Just  as  truly,  any  later  "  revelation,"  repealing 
the  one  concerning  polygamy,  must  be  either  a  pretence  or  a  tem- 
porary expedient,  in  orthodox  Mormon  eyes.  The  Mormons  date 
the  active  crusade  of  the  government  against  polygamy  from  the 
return  of  the  Colfax  party  to  the  East,  holding  that  this  question 
did  not  enter  into  the  early  differences  between  them  and  the  gov- 
ernment.1 

In  the  year  following  Colfax's  visit,  there  occurred  in  Utah  two 
murders  which  attracted  wide  notice,  and  which  called  attention 
once  more  to  the  insecurity  of  the  life  of  any  man  against  whom 
the  finger  of  the  church  was  crooked.  The  first  victim  was  O.  N. 
Brassfield,  a  non-Mormon,  who  had  the  temerity  to  marry,  on 
March  20,  1866,  the  second  polygamous  wife  of  a  Mormon  while 
the  husband  was  in  Europe  on  a  mission.  As  he  was  entering  his 
house  in  Salt  Lake  City,  on  the  third  day  of  the  following  month, 
he  was  shot  dead.  An  order  that  had  been  given  to  disband  the 
volunteer  troops  still  remaining  in  the  territory  was  counter- 
manded from  Washington,  and  General  Sherman,  then  commander 
of  that  department,  telegraphed  to  Young  that  he  hoped  to  hear  of 
no  more  murders  of  Gentiles  in  Utah,  intimating  that,  if  he  did,  it 
would  be  easy  to  reenlist  some  of  the  recently  discharged  volun- 
teers and  march  them  through  the  territory. 

The  second  victim  was  Dr.  J.  King  Robinson,  a  young  man 
who  had  come  to  Utah  as  assistant  surgeon  of  the  California  vol- 

1  Tullidge's  "  History  of  Salt  Lake  City,"  p.  358. 


EASTERN   VISITORS   TO   SALT   LAKE   CITY  555 

unteers,  married  the  daughter  of  a  Mormon  whose  widow  and 
daughters  had  left  the  church,  and  taken  possession  of  the  land  on 
which  were  some  well-known  warm  springs,  with  the  intention  of 
establishing  there  a  sanitarium.  The  city  authorities  at  once  set 
up  a  claim  to  the  warm  springs  property,  a  building  Dr.  Robinson 
had  erected  there  was  burned,  and,  as  he  became  aggressive  in 
asserting  his  legal  rights,  he  was  called  out  one  night,  ostensibly  to 
set  a  broken  leg,  knocked  down,  and  shot  dead.  The  audacity  of 
this  crime  startled  even  the  Mormons,  and  the  opinion  has  been 
expressed  that  nothing  more  serious  than  a  beating  had  been 
intended.  There  was  an  inquest  before  a  city  alderman,  at  which 
some  non-Mormon  lawyers  and  Judges  Titus  and  McCurdy  were 
asked  to  assist.  The  chief  feature  of  this  hearing  was  the  sum- 
ming up  by  Ex-Governor  J.  B.  Weller,  of  California,  in  which  he 
denounced  such  murders,  asked  if  there  was  not  an  organized 
influence  which  prevented  the  punishment  of  their  perpetrators, 
and  confessed  that  the  prosecution  had  not  been  permitted  "  to  lift 
the  veil,  and  show  the  perpetrators  of  this  horrible  murder."  1 

General  W.  B.  Hazen,  in  his  report  of  February,  1867,  said  of 
these  victims :  — 

"There  is  no  doubt  of  their  murder  from  Mormon  church  influences,  although 
I  do  not  believe  by  direct  command.  Principles  are  taught  in  their  churches 
which  would  lead  to  such  murders.  I  have  earnestly  to  recommend  that  a  list  be 
made  of  the  Mormon  leaders,  according  to  their  importance,  excepting  Brigham 
Young,  and  that  the  President  of  the  United  States  require  the  commanding  officer 
at  Camp  Douglas  to  arrest  and  send  to  the  state's  prison  at  Jefferson  City,  Mo., 
beginning  at  the  head  of  the  list,  man  for  man  hereafter  killed  as  these  men 
were,  to  be  held  until  the  real  perpetrators  of  the  deed,  with  evidence  for  their 
conviction,  be  given  up.     I  believe  Young  for  the  present  necessary  for  us  there."  2 

Had  this  policy  been  adopted,  Mormon  prisoners  would  soon 
have  started  East,  for  very  soon  afterward  three  other  murders  of 
the  same  character  occurred,  although  the  victims  were  not  so 
prominent.3  Chief  Justice  Titus  incurred  the  hatred  of  the  Mor- 
mons by  determined,  if  futile,  efforts  to  bring  offenders  in  such  cases 
to  justice,  and  to  show  their  feeling  they  sent  him  a  nightgown  ten 
feet  long,  at  the  hands  of  a  negro. 

1  Text  in  "  Rocky  Mountain  Saints,"  Appendix  I. 

2  Mis.  House  Doc.  No.  75,  2d  Session,  39th  Congress. 
8  See  note  70,  p.  628,  Bancroft's  "  History  of  Utah." 


556  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

When,  in  July,  1869,  a  delegation  from  Illinois,  that  included 
Senator  Trumbull,  Governor  Oglesby,  Editor  Medill  of  the  Chicago 
Tribune,  and  many  members  of  the  Chicago  Board  of  Trade,  visited 
Salt  Lake  City,  they  were  welcomed  by  and  affiliated  with  the 
Gentile  element ; 1  and  when,  in  the  following  October,  Vice  Presi- 
dent Colfax  paid  a  second  visit  to  the  city,  he  declined  the  courtesies 
tendered  to  him  by  the  city  officers.2  He  made  an  address  from 
the  portico  of  the  Townsend  House,  of  which  polygamy  was  the 
principle  feature,  and  was  soon  afterward  drawn  into  a  newspaper 
discussion  of  the  subject  with  John  Taylor. 

1  In  an  interview  between  Young  and  Senator  Trumbull  during  this  visit  (reported 
in  the  Alia  California),  the  following  conversation  took  place :  — 

"  Young — We  can  take  care  of  ourselves.  Cumming  was  good  enough  in  his  way, 
for  you  know  he  was  simply  Governor  of  the  Territory,  while  I  was  and  am  Governor  of 
the  people." 

11  Senator  Trumbull — Mr.  Young,  may  I  say  to  the  President  that  you  intend  to 
observe  the  laws  under  the  constitution  ?  " 

"  Young — Well — yes  —  we  intend  to." 

"  Senator  Trumbull —  But  may  I  say  to  him  that  you  will  do  so?" 

"  Young — Yes,  yes;  so  far  as  the  laws  are  just,  certainly." 

2  "  Mr.  Colfax  politely  refused  to  accept  the  proffered  courtesies  of  the  city.  Brig- 
ham  was  reported  to  have  uttered  abusive  language  in  the  Tabernacle  towards  the  Gov- 
ernment and  Congress,  and  to  have  charged  the  President  and  Vice  President  with 
being  drunkards.  One  of  the  Aldermen  who  waited  upon  Mr.  Colfax  to  tender  to  him  the 
hospitality  of  the  city  could  only  say  that  he  did  not  hear  Brigham  say  so."  —  "  Rocky 
Mountain  Saints,"  p.  638. 


CHAPTER   XX 

GENTILE   IRRUPTION   AND  MORMON   SCHISM 

The  end  of  the  complete  seclusion  of  the  Mormon  settlement  in 
Utah  from  the  rest  of  the  country  —  complete  except  so  far  as  it 
was  interrupted  by  the  passage  through  the  territory  of  the  Cali- 
fornia emigration  —  dates  from  the  establishment  of  Camp  Floyd, 
and  the  breaking  up  of  that  camp  and  the  disposal  of  its  accumu- 
lation of  supplies,  which  gave  the  first  big  impetus  to  mercantile 
traffic  in  Utah.1  Young  was  ever  jealous  of  the  mercantile  power, 
so  openly  jealous  that,  as  Tullidge  puts  it,  "to  become  a  merchant 
was  to  antagonize  the  church  and  her  policies,  so  that  it  was 
almost  illegitimate  for  Mormon  men  of  enterprising  character  to 
enter  into  mercantile  pursuits."  This  policy  naturally  increased 
the  business  of  non-Mormons  who  established  themselves  in  the 
city,  and  their  prosperity  directed  the  attention  of  the  church 
authorities  to  them,  and  the  pulpit  orators  hurled  anathemas  at 
those  who  traded  with  them.  Thus  Young,  in  a  discourse,  on 
March  28,  1858,  urging  the  people  to  use  home-made  material, 
said :  "  Let  the  calicoes  lie  on  the  shelves  and  rot.  I  would 
rather  build  buildings  every  day  and  burn  them  down  at  night, 
than  have  traders  here  communing  with  our  enemies  outside,  and 
keeping  up  a  hell  all  the  time,  and  raising  devils  to  keep  it  going. 
They  brought  their  hell  with  them.  We  can  have  enough  of  our 
own  without  their  help."2  A  system  of  espionage,  by  means  of 
the  city  police,  was  kept  on  the  stores  of  non-Mormons,  until  it 

1  "  The  community  had  become  utterly  destitute  of  almost  everything  necessary  to 
their  social  comfort.  The  people  were  poorly  clad,  and  rarely  ever  saw  anything  on 
their  tables  but  what  was  prepared  from  flour,  corn,  beet-molasses,  and  the  vegetables 
and  fruits  of  their  gardens.  ...  It  was  at  Camp  Floyd,  indeed,  where  the  principal 
Utah  merchants  and  business  men  of  the  second  decade  of  our  history  may  be  said  to 
have  laid  the  foundation  of  their  fortunes,  among  whom  were  the  Walker  Brothers."  — 
Tullidge,  "  History  of  Salt  Lake  City,"  pp.  246-247. 

2  Journal  of  Discourses,  Vol.  VII,  p.  45. 

557 


558  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

required  courage  for  a  Mormon  to  make  a  purchase  in  one  of 
these  establishments.  To  trade  with  an  apostate  Mormon  was, 
of  course,  a  still  greater  offence. 

Among  the  mercantile  houses  that  became  strong  after  the 
establishment  of  Camp  Floyd  was  that  of  Walker  Brothers. 
There  were  four  of  them,  Englishmen,  who  had  come  over  with 
their  mother,  and  shared  in  the  privations  of  the  early  Utah  set- 
tlement. Possessed  of  practical  business  talent  and  independence 
of  thought,  they  rebelled  against  Young's  dictatorial  rule  and  the 
varied  trammels  by  which  their  business  was  restricted.  Without 
openly  apostatizing,  they  insisted  on  a  measure  of  independence. 
One  manifestation  of  this  was  a  refusal  to  contribute  one-tenth  of 
their  income  as  a  tithe  for  the  expenditure  of  which  no  account 
was  rendered.  One  year,  when  asked  for  their  tithe,  they  gave  the 
Bishop  of  their  ward  a  check  for  $500  as  "  a  contribution  to  the 
poor."  When  this  form  of  contribution  was  reported  to  Young, 
he  refused  to  accept  it,  and  sent  the  brothers  word  that  he  would 
cut  them  off  from  the  church  unless  they  paid  their  tithe  in  the 
regular  way.    Their  reply  was  to  tear  up  the  check  and  defy  Young. 

The  natural  result  followed.  Brigham  and  his  lieutenants 
waged  an  open  war  on  these  merchants,  denouncing  them  in  the 
Tabernacle,  and  keeping  policemen  before  their  doors.  The 
Walkers,  on  their  part,  kept  on  offering  good  wares  at  reasonable 
prices,  and  thus  retained  the  custom  of  as  many  Mormons  as 
dared  trade  with  them  openly,  or  could  slip  in  undiscovered. 
Even  the  expedient  of  placing  a  sign  bearing  an  "  all-seeing  eye  " 
and  the  words  "Holiness  to  the  Lord"  over  every  Mormon 
trader's  door  did  not  steer  away  from  other  doors  the  Mormon  cus- 
tomers who  delighted  in  bargains.  But  the  church  power  was 
too  great  for  any  one  firm  to  fight.  Not  only  was  a  business 
man's  capital  in  danger  in  those  times,  when  the  church  was 
opposed  to  him,  but  his  life  was  not  safe.  Stenhouse  draws  this 
picture  of  the  condition  of  affairs  in  1866  :  — 

"  After  the  assassination  of  Dr.  Robinson,  fears  of  violence  were  not  unnatural, 
and  many  men  who  had  never  before  carried  arms  buckled  on  their  revolvers. 
Highly  respectable  men  in  Salt  Lake  City  forsook  the  sidewalks  after  dusk,  and, 
as  they  repaired  to  their  residences,  traversed  the  middle  of  the  public  street, 
carrying  their  revolvers  in  their  hands. 

"  With  such  a  feeling  of  uneasiness,  nearly  all  the  non-Mormon  merchants 
joined  in  a  letter  to  Brigham  Young,  offering,  if  the  church  would  purchase  their 


GENTILE   IRRUPTION   AND   MORMON   SCHISM  559 

goods  and  estates  at  twenty-five  per  cent  less  than  their  valuation,  they  would 
leave  the  Territory.  Brigham  answered  them  cavalierly  that  he  had  not  asked 
them  to  come  into  the  Territory,  did  not  ask  them  to  leave  it,  and  that  they  might 
stay  as  long  as  they  pleased. 

"It  was  clear  that  Brigham  felt  himself  master  of  the  situation,  and  the  mer- 
chants had  to  bide  their  time,  and  await  the  coming  change  that  was  anticipated 
from  the  completion  of  the  Pacific  Railroad.  As  the  great  iron  way  approached 
the  mountains,  and  every  day  gave  greater  evidence  of  its  being  finished  at  a 
much  earlier  period  than  was  at  first  anticipated,  the  hope  of  what  it  would 
accomplish  nerved  the  discontented  to  struggle  with  the  passing  day." x 

The  Mormon  historian  incorporates  these  two  last  paragraphs 
in  his  book,  and  says  :  "  Here  is  at  once  described  the  Gentile  and 
apostate  view  of  the  situation  in  those  times,  and,  confined  as  it 
is  to  the  salient  point,  no  lengthy  special  argument  in  favor  of 
President  Young's  policies  could  more  clearly  justify  his  mercan- 
tile cooperative  movement.  //  was  the  moment  of  life  or  death  to 
the  temporal  power  of  the  church.  .  .  .  The  organization  of 
Z.  C.  M.  I.  at  that  crisis  saved  the  temporal  supremacy  of  the 
Mormon  commonwealth."2  It  was  to  meet  outside  competition 
with  a  force  which  would  be  invincible  that  Young  conceived  the 
idea  of  Zion's  Cooperative  Mercantile  Institution,  which  was  incor- 
porated in  1869,  with  Young  as  president.  In  carrying  out  this 
idea  no  opposing  interest,  whether  inside  the  church  or  out  of  it, 
received  the  slightest  consideration.  "The  universal  dominance 
of  the  head  of  the  church  is  admitted,"  says  Tullidge,  "  and  in 
1868,  before  the  opening  of  the  Utah  mines  and  the  existence  of 
a  mixed  population,  there  was  no  commercial  escape  from  the 
necessities  of  a  combination."  3 

Young  is  said  to  have  received  the  idea  of  the  big  cooperative 
enterprise  from  a  small  trader  who  asked  permission  to  establish  a 
mercantile  system  on  the  cooperative  plan,  of  moderate  dimensions, 
throughout  the  territory.  He  gave  it  definite  shape  at  a  meeting 
of  merchants  in  October,  1868,  which  was  followed  by  a  circular 
explaining  the  scheme  to  the  people.  A  preamble  asserted  "  the 
impolicy  of  leaving  the  trade  and  commerce  of  this  territory  to  be 
conducted  by  strangers."    The  constitution  of  the  concern  provided 

1  "  Rocky  Mountain  Saints,"  p.  625. 

2  Tullidge's  "  History  of  Salt  Lake  City,"  p.  385. 

3  "  Cooperation  is  as  much  a  cardinal  and  essential  doctrine  of  the  Mormon  church 
as  baptism  for  the  remission  of  sin."  —  Tullidge,  "  History  of  Salt  Lake  City." 


560  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

for  a  capital  of  $3,000,000  in  $100  shares.  Young's  original  idea 
was  to  have  all  the  merchants  pool  their  stocks,  those  who  found 
no  places  in  the  new  establishment  to  go  into  some  other  business, 
—  farming  for  instance,  —  renting  their  stores  as  they  could.  Of 
course  this  meant  financial  ruin  to  the  unprovided  for,  and  the 
opposition  was  strong.  But  Young  was  not  to  be  turned  from  the 
object  he  had  in  view.  One  man  told  Stenhouse  that  when  he 
reported  to  Young  that  a  certain  merchant  would  be  ruined  by  the 
scheme,  and  would  not  only  be  unable  to  pay  his  debts,  but  would 
lose  his  homestead,  Young's  reply  was  that  the  man  had  no  busi- 
ness to  get  into  debt,  and  that  "if  he  loses  his  property  it  serves 
him  right."  Tullidge,  in  an  article  in  Harper  s  Magazine  for  Sep- 
tember, 1 87 1  (written  when  he  was  at  odds  with  Young),  said, 
"The  Mormon  merchants  were  publicly  told  that  all  who  refused  to 
join  the  cooperation  should  be  left  out  in  the  cold ;  and  against  the 
two  most  popular  of  them  the  Lion  of  the  Lord  roared,  '  If  Henry 
Lawrence  don't  mind  what's  he's  about  I'll  send  him  on  a  mission, 
and  W.  S.  Godbe  I'll  cut  off  from  the  church.' " 

After  the  organization  of  the  concern  in  1869  some  of  the  lead- 
ing Mormon  merchants  in  Salt  Lake  City  sold  their  goods  to  it  on 
favorable  terms,  knowing  that  the  prices  of  their  stock  would  go 
down  when  the  opening  of  the  railroad  lowered  freight  rates.  The 
Z.  C.  M.  I.  was  started  as  a  wholesale  and  retail  concern,  and 
Young  recommended  that  ward  stores  be  opened  throughout  the  city 
which  should  buy  their  goods  of  the  Institution.  Local  cooperative 
stores  were  also  organized  throughout  the  territory,  each  of  which 
was  under  pressure  to  make  its  purchases  of  the  central  concern. 
Branches  were  afterward  established  at  Ogden,  at  Logan,  and  at 
Soda  Springs,  Idaho,  and  a  large  business  was  built  up  and  is  still 
continued.1  The  effect  of  this  new  competition  on  the  non-Mor- 
mon establishments  was,  of  course,  very  serious.  Walker  Brothers' 
sales,  for  instance,  dropped  $5000  or  $6000  a  month,  and  only  the 

1  Bancroft  says  that  in  1883  the  total  sales  of  the  Institution  exceeded  $4,000,000, 
and  a  half  yearly  dividend  of  five  per  cent  was  paid  in  October  of  that  year,  and  there 
was  a  reserve  fund  of  about  $125,000;  he  placed  the  sales  of  the  Ogden  branch,  in  1883, 
at  about  $800,000,  and  of  the  Logan  branch  at  about  $600,000.  The  thirty-second 
annual  statement  of  the  Institution,  dated  April  5,  1901,  contains  the  following  figures: 
Capital  stock,  $1,077,144.89;  reserve,  $362,898.95;  undivided  profits,  $179,042.88;  cash 
receipts,  February  1  to  December  31,  1900,  $3,457,624.44,  sales  for  the  same  period, 
$3,489,571.84.  The  branch  houses  named  in  this  report  are  at  Ogden  City  and  Provo, 
Utah,  and  at  Idaho  Falls,  Idaho. 


GENTILE   IRRUPTION   AND   MORMON   SCHISM  561 

opportunity  to  divert  their  capital  profitably  to  mining  saved  them 
and  others  from  immediate  ruin. 

But  at  this  time  an  influence  was  preparing  to  make  itself  felt 
in  Utah  which  was  a  more  powerful  opponent  of  Brigham  Young's 
authority  than  any  he  had  yet  encountered.  This  influence  took 
shape  in  what  was  known  as  the  "  New  Movement,"  and  also  as 
"  The  Reformation."  Its  original  leaders  were  W.  S.  Godbe  and 
E.  L.  T.  Harrison.  Godbe  was  an  Englishman,  who  saw  a  good 
deal  of  the  world  as  a  sailor,  embraced  the  Mormon  faith  in  his 
own  country  when  seventeen  years  of  age,  and  walked  most  of  the 
way  from  New  York  to  Salt  Lake  City  in  185 1.  He  became 
prominent  in  the  Mormon  capital  as  a  merchant,  making  the  trip 
over  the  plains  twenty-four  times  between  185 1  and  1859.  Harri- 
son was  an  architect  by  profession,  a  classical  scholar,  and  a  writer 
of  no  mean  ability. 

With  these  men  were  soon  associated  Eli  B.  Kelsey,  a  leading 
elder  in  the  Mormon  church,  a  president  of  Seventies,  and  a  promi- 
nent worker  in  the  English  missions ;  H.  W.  Lawrence,  a  wealthy 
merchant  who  was  a  Bishop's  counsellor ;  Amasa  M.  Lyman,  who 
had  been  one  of  the  Twelve  Apostles  and  was  acknowledged  to  be 
one  of  the  most  eloquent  preachers  in  the  church  ;  W.  H.  Sherman, 
a  prominent  elder  and  a  man  of  literary  ability,  who  many  years 
later  went  back  to  the  church  ;  T.  B.  H.  Stenhouse,  a  Scotchman 
by  birth,  who  was  converted  to  Mormonism  in  1846,  and  took  a 
prominent  part  in  missionary  work  in  Europe,  for  three  years  hold- 
ing the  position  of  president  of  the  Swiss  and  Italian  missions  ;  he 
emigrated  to  this  country  with  his  wife  and  children  in  1855,  prac- 
tically penniless,  and  supported  himself  for  a  time  in  New  York 
City  as  a  newspaper  writer  ;  in  Salt  Lake  City  he  married  a  second 
wife  by  Young's  direction,  and  one  of  his  daughters  by  his  first 
wife  married  Brigham's  eldest  son.  Stenhouse  did  not  win  the 
confidence  of  either  Mormons  or  non-Mormons  in  the  course  of  his 
career,  but  his  book,  "  The  Rocky  Mountain  Saints,"  contains  much 
valuable  information.  Active  with  these  men  in  the  "  New  Move- 
ment "  was  Edward  W.  Tullidge,  an  elder  and  one  of  the  Seventy, 
and  a  man  of  great  literary  ability.  In  later  years  Tullidge,  while 
not  openly  associating  himself  with  the  Mormon  church,  wrote  the 
"  History  of  Salt  Lake  City  "  which  the  church  accepts,  a  "  Life 
of  Brigham  Young,"  which  could  not  have  been  more  fulsome  if 


562  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

written  by  the  most  devout  Mormon,  and  a  "  Life  of  Joseph  the 
Prophet,"  which  is  a  valueless  expurgated  edition  of  Joseph's  auto- 
biography which  ran  through  the  Millennial  Star. 

The  "  New  Movement  "  was  assisted  by  the  advent  of  non-Mor- 
'  mons  to  the  territory,  by  Young's  arbitrary  methods  in  starting  his 
cooperative  scheme,  by  the  approaching  completion  of  the  Pacific 
Railroad,  and,  in  a  measure,  by  the  organization  of  the  Reorgan- 
ized Church  under  the  leadership  of  the  prophet  Joseph  Smith's 
eldest  son.  Two  elders  of  that  church,  who  went  to  Salt  Lake 
City  in  1863,  were  refused  permission  to  preach  in  the  Tabernacle, 
but  did  effective  work  by  house-to-house  visitations,  and  there 
were  said  to  be  more  than  three  hundred  of  the  "  Josephites,"  as 
they  were  called,  in  Salt  Lake  City  in  1864.1 

Harrison  and  Tullidge  had  begun  the  publication  of  a  magazine 
called  the  Peep  o'  Day  at  Camp  Douglas,  but  it  was  a  financial 
failure.  Then  Godbe  and  Harrison  started  the  Utah  Maga- 
zine,  of  which  Harrison  was  editor.  This,  too,  was  only  a  drain 
on  their  purses.  Accordingly,  some  time  in  the  year  1868,  giving 
it  over  to  the  care  of  Tullidge,  they  set  out  on  a  trip  to  New  York 
by  stage.  Both  were  in  doubt  on  many  points  regarding  their 
church ;  both  were  of  that  mental  make-up  which  is  susceptible 
to  "revelations"  and  "callings";  by  the  time  they  reached  New 
York  they  realized  that  they  were  "on  the  road  to  apostasy." 

Long  discussions  of  the  situation  took  place  between  them,  and 
the  outcome  was  characteristic  of  men  who  had  been  influenced 
by  such  teachings  as  those  of  the  Mormons.  Kneeling  down  in 
their  room,  they  prayed  earnestly,  and  as  they  did  so  "  a  voice 
spoke  to  them."  For  three  weeks,  while  Godbe  transacted  his 
mercantile  business,  his  friend  prepared  questions  on  religion  and 
philosophy,  "and  in  the  evening,  by  appointment,  ',a  band  of 
spirits '  came  to  them  and  held  converse  with  them,  as  friends 
would  speak  with  friends.  One  by  one  the  questions  prepared  by 
Mr.  Harrison  were  read,  and  Mr.  Godbe  and  Mr.  Harrison,  with 
pencil  and  paper,  took  down  the  answers  as  they  heard  them  given 
by  the  spirits."2     The  instruction  which  they  thus  received  was 

1  "Persecution  followed,  as  they  claimed;  and  in  early  summer  about  one-half  of 
the  Josephites  in  Salt  Lake  City  started  eastward,  so  great  being  the  excitement  that 
General  Connor  ordered  a  strong  escort  to  accompany  them  as  far  as  Greene  River.  To 
those  who  remained,  protection  was  also  afforded  by  the  authorities."  —  Bancroft, 
"  History  of  Utah,"  p.  645. 

2  "  Rocky  Mountain  Saints,"  p.  631. 


GENTILE   IRRUPTION  AND   MORMON    SCHISM  563 

Delphic  in  its    clearness  —  that  which  was   true    in    Mormonism 
should  be  preserved  and  the  rest  should  be  rejected. 

When  they  returned  to  Utah  they  took  Elder  Eli  B.  Kelsey, 
Elder  H.  W.  Lawrence,  a  man  of  wealth,  and  Stenhouse  into  their 
confidence,  and  it  was  decided  to  wage  open  warfare  on  Young's 
despotism,  using  the  Utah  Magazine  as  their  mouthpiece.  With- 
out attacking  Young  personally,  or  the  fundamental  Mormon 
beliefs,  the  magazine  disputed  Young's  doctrine  that  the  world 
was  degenerating  to  ruin,  held  up  the  really  "  great  characters  " 
the  world  has  known,  that  Young  might  be  contrasted  with  them, 
and  discussed  the  probabilities  of  honest  errors  in  religious  beliefs. 
When  the  Mormon  leaders  read  in  the  magazine  such  doctrine  as 
that,  "There  is  one  false  error  which  possesses  the  minds  of  some 
in  this,  that  God  Almighty  intended  the  priesthood  to  do  our 
thinking,"  they  realized  that  they  had  a  contest  on  their  hands. 

Young  got  into  trouble  with  the  laboring  men  at  this  time. 
He  had  contracts  for  building  a  part  of  the  Pacific  Railroad,  which 
were  sublet  at  a  profit.  An  attempt  by  him  to  bring  about  a  reduc- 
tion of  wages  gave  the  magazine  an  opportunity  to  plead  the 
laborers'  cause  which  it  gladly  embraced.1 

In  the  summer  of  1869  Alexander  and  David  Hyrum 
Smith,  sons  of  the  prophet,  visited  Salt  Lake  City  in  the  interest 
of  the  Reorganized  Church.  Many  of  Young's  followers  still 
looked  on  the  sons  of  the  prophet  as  their  father's  rightful  suc- 
cessor to  the  leadership  of  the  Church,  as  Young  at  Nauvoo  had 
promised  that  Joseph  III  should  be.  But  these  sons  now  found 
that,  even  to  be  acknowledged  as  members  of  Brigham's  fold, 
they  must  accept  baptism  at  the  hands  of  one  of  his  elders,  and 
acknowledge  the  "revelation"  concerning  polygamy  as  coming 
from  God.  They  had  not  come  with  that  intent.  But  they  called 
on  Young  and  discussed  with  him  the  injection  of  polygamy  into 
the  church  doctrines.  Young  finally  told  them  that  they  pos- 
sessed, not  the  spirit  of  their  father,  but  of  their  mother  Emma, 
whom  Young  characterized  as  "  a  liar,  yes,  the  damnedest  liar  that 
lived,"  declaring  that  she  tried  to  poison  the  prophet.2  He  refused 
to  them  the  use  of  the    Tabernacle,  but   they  spoke  in    private 

1  Harper's  Magazine,  Vol.  XLIII,  p.  605. 

2  For  Alexander  Smith's  report,  see  True  Latter-Day  Saints'  Herald,  Vol.  XVI, 
pp.  85-86. 


564  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

houses  and,  through  the  influence  of  the  Walker  brothers,  secured 
Independence  Hall.  The  Brighamites,  using  a  son  of  Hyrum 
Smith  as  their  mouthpiece,1  took  pains  that  a  goodly  number  of 
polygamists  should  attend  the  Independence  Hall  meetings,  and 
interruptions  of  the  speakers  turned  the  gatherings  into  something 
like  personal  wrangles.  « 

The  presence  of  the  prophet's  sons  gave  'the  leaders  of  "  The 
Reformation  "  an  opportunity  to  aim  a  thrust  at  what  was  then 
generally  understood  to  be  one  of  Brigham  Young's  ambitions, 
namely,  the  handing  down  of  the  Presidency  of  the  church  to  his 
oldest  son ;  and  an  article  in  their  magazine  presented  the  matter 
in  this  light :  "  If  we  know  the  true  feeling  of  our  brethren,  it  is 
that  they  never  intend  Joseph  Smith's  nor  any  other  man's  son  to 
preside  over  them,  simply  because  of  their  sonship.  The  prin- 
ciple of  heirship  has  cursed  the  world  for  ages,  and  with  our 
brethren  we  expect  to  fight  it  till,  with  every  other  relic  of  tyranny, 
it  is  trodden  under  foot."  Young  accepted  this  challenge,  and  at 
once  ordered  Harrison  and  two  other  elders  in  affiliation  with  him 
to  depart  on  missions.     They  disobeyed  the  order. 

Godbe  and  Harrison  told  their  friends  in  Utah  that  they  had 
learned  from  the  spirits  who  visited  them  in  New  York  that  the 
release  of  the  people  of  the  territory  from  the  despotism  of  the 
church  could  come  only  through  the  development  of  the  mines. 
So  determined  was  the  opposition  of  Young's  priesthood  to  this 
development  that  its  open  advocacy  in  the  magazine  was  the  cause 
of  more  serious  discussion  than  that  given  to  any  of  the  other  sub- 
jects treated.  As  "The  Reformation  "  did  not  then  embrace  more 
than  a  dozen  members,  the  courage  necessary  to  defy  the  church 
on  such  a  question  was  not  to  be  belittled.  Just  at  that  time  came 
the  visit  of  the  Illinois  party  and  of  Vice  President  Colfax,  and 
the  latter  was  made  acquainted  with  their  plans  and  gave  them 
encouragement.  Ten  days  later  the  magazine,  in  an  article  on 
"The  True  Development  of  the  Territory,"  openly  advised  paying 
more  attention  to  mining.  Young  immediately  called  together  the 
"  School  of  the  Prophets."  This  was  an  organization  instituted 
in  Utah,  with  the  professed  object  of  discussing  doctrinal  ques- 
tions, having  the  "  revelations  "  of  the  prophet  elucidated  by  his 

1  Hyrum's  widow  went  to  Salt  Lake  City,  and  died  there  in  September,  1852,  at  the 
house  of  H.  C.  Kimball,  who  had  taken  care  of  her. 


GENTILE   IRRUPTION   AND   MORMON   SCHISM  565 

colleagues,  etc.  It  was  not  open  to  all  church  members,  the 
"scholars"  attending  by  invitation,  and  it  soon  became  an  organi- 
zation under  Young's  direction  which  took  cognizance  of  the  secu- 
lar doings  of  the  people,  exercising  an  espionage  over  them.  The 
school  is  no  longer  maintained.  Before  this  school  Young  de- 
nounced the  "  Reformers  "  in  his  most  scathing  terms,  going  so 
far  as  to  intimate  that  his  rule  was  itself  in  danger.  Consequently  / 
the  leaders  of  the  "  New  Movement "  were  notified  to  appear 
before  the  High  Council  for  a  hearing. 

When  this  hearing  occurred,  Young  managed  that  Godbe  and 
Harrison  should  be  the  only  persons  on  trial.  Both  of  them  defied 
him  to  his  face,  denying  his  "  right  to  dictate  to  them  in  all  things 
spiritual  and  temporal,"  — this  was  the  question  put  to  them,  — and 
protesting  against  his  rule.  They  also  read  a  set  of  resolutions 
giving  an  outline  of  their  intended  movements.  They  were  at 
once  excommunicated,  and  the  only  elder,  Eli  B.  Kelsey,  who 
voted  against  this  action  was  immediately  punished  in  the  same 
way.  Kelsey  was  not  granted  even  the  perfunctory  hearing  that 
was  customarily  allowed  in  such  cases,  and  he  was  "  turned  over 
to  the  devil,"  instead  of  being  consigned  by  the  usual  formula 
"to  the  buffetings  of  Satan." 

But  this  did  not  silence  the  "  Reformers."  Their  lives  were 
considered  in  danger  by  their  acquaintances,  and  the  assassination 
of  the  most  prominent  of  them  was  anticipated ; J  but  they  went 

1  "  In  August  my  husband  sent  a  respectful  and  kindly  letter  to  the  Bishop  of  our 
ward,  stating  that  he  had  no  faith  in  Brigham's  claim  to  an  '  Infallible  Priesthood,'  and 
that  he  considered  that  he  ought  to  be  cut  off  from  the  church.  I  added  a  postscript 
stating  that  I  wished  to  share  my  husband's  fate.  A  little  after  ten  o'clock,  on  the  Sat- 
urday night  succeeding  our  withdrawal  from  the  church,  we  were  returning  home  together 
.  .  .  when  we  suddenly  saw  four  men  come  out  from  under  some  trees  at  a  little  dis- 
tance from  us.  .  .  .  As  soon  as  they  approached,  they  seized  hold  of  my  husband's 
arms,  one  on  each  side,  and  held  him  firmly,  thus  rendering  him  almost  powerless. 
They  were  all  masked.  ...  In  an  instant  I  saw  them  raise  their  arms,  as  if  taking  aim, 
and  for  one  brief  second  I  thought  that  our  end  had  surely  come,  and  that  we,  like  so 
many  obnoxious  persons  before  us,  were  about  to  be  murdered  for  the  great  sin  of  apos- 
tasy. This  I  firmly  believe  would  have  been  my  husband's  fate  if  I  had  not  chanced  to 
be  with  him  or  had  I  run  away.  .  .  .  The  wretches,  although  otherwise  well  armed, 
were  not  holding  revolvers  in  their  hands  as  I  at  first  supposed.  They  were  furnished 
with  huge  garden  syringes,  charged  with  the  most  disgusting  filth.  My  hair,  bonnet, 
face,  clothes,  person  —  every  inch  of  my  body,  every  shred  I  wore  —  were  in  an  instant 
saturated,  and  my  husband  and  myself  stood  there  reeking  from  head  to  foot.  The  vil- 
lains, when  they  had  perpetrated  this  disgusting  and  brutal  outrage,  turned  and  fled." 
—  Mrs.  Stenhouse,  "Tell  it  All,"  pp.  578-581. 


566  THE   STORY  OF  THE  MORMONS 

straight  ahead  on  the  lines  they  had  proclaimed.  Their  first  pub- 
lic meetings  were  held  on  Sunday,  December  19,  1869.  The 
knowledge  of  the  fact  that  they  claimed  to  act  by  direct  and  recent 
revelation  gave  them  no  small  advantage  with  a  people  whose 
belief  rested  on  such  manifestations  of  the  divine  will,  and  they 
had  crowded  audiences.  The  services  were  continued  every  Sun- 
day, and  on  the  evening  of  one  week  day ;  the  magazine  went  on 
with  its  work,  and  they  were  the  founders  of  the  Salt  Lake  Tribune 
which  later,  as  a  secular  journal,  has  led  the  Gentile  press  in  Utah. 
But  the  attempt  to  establish  a  reformed  Mormonism  did  not 
succeed,  and  the  organization  gradually  disappeared.  One  of  the 
surviving  leaders  said  to  me  (in  October,  1901) :  "My  parents  had 
believed  in  Mormonism,  and  I  believed  in  the  Mormon  prophet 
and  the  doctrines  set  forth  in  his  revelations.  We  hoped  to  purify 
the  Mormon  church,  eradicating  evils  that  had  annexed  them- 
selves to  it  in  later  years.  But  our  study  of  the  question  showed 
us  that  the  Mormon  faith  rested  on  no  substantial  basis,  and  we 
became  believers  in  transcendentalism."  Mr.  Godbe  and  Mr. 
Lawrence  still  reside  in  Utah.  The  former  has  made  and  lost 
more  than  one  fortune  in  the  mines.  The  Mormon  historian 
Whitney  says  of  the  leaders  in  this  attempted  reform  :  "  These 
men  were  all  reputable  and  respected  members  of  the  community. 
Naught  against  their  morality  or  general  uprightness  of  character 
was  known  or  advanced."  1  Stenhouse,  writing  three  years  before 
Young's  death,  said:  — 

"  But  for  the  boldness  of  the  Reformers,  Utah  to-day  would  not  have  been 
what  it  is.  Inspired  by  their  example,  the  people  who  have  listened  to  them 
disregarded  the  teachings  of  the  priesthood  against  trading  with  or  purchasing 
of  the  Gentiles.  The  spell  was  broken,  and,  as  in  all  such  like  experience,  the 
other  extreme  was  for  a  time  threatened.  Walker  Brothers  regained  their  lost 
trade.  .  .  .  Reference  could  be  made  to  elders,  some  of  whom  had  to  steal 
away  from  Utah,  for  fear  of  violent  hands  being  laid  upon  them  had  their  intended 
departure  been  made  known,  who  are  to-day  wealthy  and  respected  gentlemen  in 
the  highest  walks  of  life,  both  in  the  United  States  and  in  Europe." 2 

1  Whitney's  "  History  of  Utah,"  Vol.  II,  p.  332. 

2  For  accounts  of  "  The  Reformation  "  by  leaders  in  it,  see  Chap.  53  of  Stenhouse's 
"  Rocky  Mountain  Saints,"  and  Tullidge's  article,  Harper's  Magazine,  Vol.  XLIII,  p.  602. 


CHAPTER   XXI 
THE   LAST   YEARS   OF   BRIGHAM   YOUNG 

Governor  Doty  died  in  June,  1865,  without  coming  in  open 
conflict  with  Young,  and  was  succeeded  by  Charles  Durkee,  a 
native  of  Vermont,  but  appointed  from  Wisconsin,  which  state  he 
had  represented  in  the  United  States  Senate.  He  resigned  in  1869, 
and  was  succeeded  by  J.  Wilson  Shaffer  of  Illinois,  appointed  by 
President  Grant  at  the  request  of  Secretary  of  War  Rawlins,  who, 
in  a  visit  to  the  territory  in  1868,  concluded  that  its  welfare  re- 
quired a  governor  who  would  assert  his  authority.  Secretary  S.  A. 
Mann,  as  acting  governor,  had,  just  before  Shaffer's  arrival,  signed 
a  female  suffrage  bill  passed  by  the  territorial  legislature.  This 
gave  offence  to  the  new  governor,  and  Mann  was  at  once  suc- 
ceeded by  Professor  V.  H.  Vaughn  of  the  University  of  Alabama, 
and  Chief  Justice  C.  C.  Wilson  (who  had  succeeded  Titus)  by 
James  B.  McKean.  The  latter  was  a  native  of  Rensselaer  County, 
New  York  ;  had  been  county  judge  of  Saratoga  County  from  1854 
to  1858,  a  member  of  the  36th  and  37th  Congresses,  and  colonel 
of  the  72d  New  York  Volunteers. 

Governor  Shaffer's  first  important  act  was  to  issue  a  proclama- 
tion forbidding  all  drills  and  gatherings  of  the  militia  of  the  ter- 
ritory (which  meant  the  Nauvoo  Legion),  except  by  the  order  of 
himself  or  the  United  States  marshal.  Wells,  signing  himself 
"  Lieutenant  General,"  sent  the  governor  a  written  request  for  the 
suspension  of  this  order.  The  governor,  in  reply,  reminded  Wells 
that  the  only  "  Lieutenant  General"  recognized  by  law  was  then 
Philip  H.  Sheridan,  and  declined  to  assist  him  in  a  course  which 
"  would  aid  you  and  your  turbulent  associates  to  further  convince 
your  followers  that  you  and  your  associates  are  more  powerful 
than  the  federal  government."  Thus  practically  disappeared  this 
famous  Mormon  military  organization. 

Governor  Shaffer  was  ill  when  he  reached  Utah,  and  he  died 

567 


568  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

a  few  days  after  his  reply  to  Wells  was  written,  Secretary  Vaughn 
succeeding  him  until  the  arrival  of  G.  A.  Black,  the  new  secretary, 
who  then  became  acting  governor  pending  the  arrival  of  George 
L.  Woods,  an  ex-governor  of  Oregon,  who  was  next  appointed  to 
the  executive  office. 

As  soon  as  the  new  federal  judges,  who  were  men  of  high 
personal  character,  took  their  seats,  they  decided  that  the  United 
States  marshal,  and  not  the  territorial  marshal,  was  the  proper 
person  to  impanel  the  juries  in  the  federal  courts,  and  that  the 
attorney  general  appointed  by  the  President  under  the  Territorial 
Act,  and  not  the  one  elected  under  that  act,  should  prosecute  in- 
dictments found  in  the  federal  courts.  The  chief  justice  also 
filled  a  vacancy  in  the  office  of  federal  attorney.  The  territorial 
legislature  of  1870,  accordingly,  made  no  appropriation  for  the 
expenses  of  the  courts ;  and  the  chief  justice,  in  dismissing  the 
grand  and  petit  juries  on  this  account,  explained  to  them  that  he 
had  heard  one  of  the  high  priesthood  question  the  right  of  Con- 
gress even  to  pass  the  Territorial  Act. 

In  September,  1871,  the  United  States  marshal  summoned 
a  grand  jury  from  nine  counties  (twenty-three  jurors  and  seventeen 
talesmen)  of  whom  only  seven  were  Mormons.  All  the  latter,  ex- 
amined on  their  voir  dire,  declared  that  they  believed  that  polyg- 
amy was  a  revelation  to  the  church,  and  that  they  would  obey  the 
revelation  rather  than  the  law,  and  all  were  successfully  challenged. 
This  grand  jury,  early  in  October,  found  indictments  against 
Brigham  Young,  "  General "  Wells,  G.  Q.  Cannon,  and  others 
under  a  territorial  statute  directed  against  lewdness  and  im- 
proper cohabitation.  This  action  caused  intense  excitement  in 
the  Mormon  capital.  Prosecutor  Baskin  was  quoted  as  saying  that 
the  troops  at  Camp  Douglas  would  be  used  to  enforce  the  warrant 
for  Young's  arrest  if  necessary,  and  the  possible  outcome  has 
been  thus  portrayed  by  the  Mormon  historian  :  — 

"  It  was  well  known  that  he  [Young]  had  often  declared  that  he  never  would 
give  himself  up  to  be  murdered  as  his  predecessor,  the  Prophet  Joseph,  and  his 
brother  Hyrum  had  been,  while  in  the  hands  of  the  law,  and  under  the  sacred 
pledge  of  the  state  for  their  safety ;  and,  ere  this  could  have  been  repeated,  ten 
thousand  Mormon  Elders  would  have  gone  into  the  jaws  of  death  with  Brigham 
Young.  In  a  few  hours  the  suspended  Nauvoo  Legion  would  have  been  in 
arms."  1 

1  Tullidge's  "  History  of  Salt  Lake  City,"  p.  527. 


THE   LAST   YEARS   OF   BRIGHAM   YOUNG  569 

The  warrant  was  served  on  Young  at  his  house  by  the  United 
States  marshal,  and,  as  Young  was  ill,  a  deputy  was  left  in  charge 
of  him.  On  October  9  Young  appeared  in  court  with  the  leading 
men  of  the  church,  and  a  motion  to  quash  the  indictment  was  made 
before  the  chief  justice  and  denied. 

The  same  grand  jury  on  October  28  found  indictments  for 
murder  against  D.  H.  Wells,  W.  H.  Kimball,  and  Hosea  Stout 
for  alleged  responsibility  for  the  killing  of  Richard  Yates  during 
the  "war"  of  1857.  The  fact  that  the  man  was  killed  was  not 
disputed  ;  his  brains  were  knocked  out  with  an  axe  as  he  was  sleep- 
ing by  the  side  of  two  Mormon  guards.1  The  defence  was  that  he 
died  the  death  of  a  spy.  Wells  was  admitted  to  bail  in  $50,000, 
and  the  other  two  men  were  placed  under  guard  at  Camp  Douglas. 
Indictments  were  also  found  against  Brigham  Young,  W.  A.  Hick- 
man, O.  P.  Rockwell,  G.  D.  Grant,  and  Simon  Dutton  for  the 
murder  of  one  of  the  Aikin  party  at  Warm  Springs.  They  were 
all  admitted  to  bail. 

When  the  case  against  Young,  on  the  charge  of  improper 
cohabitation,  was  called  on  November  20,  his  counsel  announced 
that  he  had  gone  South  for  his  health,  as  was  his  custom  in  winter, 
and  the  prosecution  thereupon  claimed  that  his  bail  was  forfeited. 
Two  adjournments  were  granted  at  the  request  of  his  counsel.  On 
January  3  Young  appeared  in  court,  and  his  counsel  urged  that  he 
be  admitted  to  bail,  pleading  his  age  and  ill  health.  The  judge 
refused  this  request,  but  said  that  the  marshal  could,  if  he  desired, 
detain  the  prisoner  in  one  of  Young's  own  houses.  This  course 
was  taken,  and  he  remained  under  detention  until  released  by  the 
decision  of  the  United  States  Supreme  Court. 

In  April,  1872,  that  court  decided  that  the  territorial  jury  law 
of  Utah,  in  force  since  1859,  had  received  the  implied  approval  of 
Congress ;  that  the  duties  of  the  attorney  and  marshal  appointed 
by  the  President  under  the  Territorial  Act  "  have  exclusive  relation 
to  cases  arising  under  the  laws  and  constitution  of  the  United 
States,"  and  "the  making  up  of  the  [jury]  list  and  all  matters  con- 
nected with  the  designation  of  jurors  are  subject  to  the  regulation 
of  territorial  law."  2     This  was  a  great  victory  for  the  Mormons. 

In  October,  1873,  the  United  States  Supreme  Court  rendered 

1  Hickman  tells  the  story  in  his  "  Brigham's  Destroying  Angel,"  p.  1 22. 

2  Chilton  vs.  Englebrech,  13  Wallace,  p.  434. 


570  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

its  decision  in  the  case  of  "  Snow  vs.  The  United  States  "  on  the 
appeal  from  Chief  Justice  McKean's  ruling  about  the  authority  of 
the  prosecuting  officers.  It  overruled  the  chief  justice,  confining 
the  duties  of  the  attorney  appointed  by  the  President  to  cases  in 
which  the  federal  government  was  concerned,  concluding  that  "  in 
any  event,  no  great  inconvenience  can  arise,  because  the  entire 
matter  is  subject  to  the  control  and  regulation  of  Congress."  1 

The  following  comments,  from  three  different  sources,  will 
show  the  reader  how  many  influences  were  then  shaping  the  con- 
trol of  authority  in  Utah  :  — 

"At  about  this  time  [December,  1871]  a  change  came  in  the  action  of  the 
Department  of  Justice  in  these  Utah  prosecutions,  and  fair-minded  men  of  the 
nation  demanded  of  the  United  States  Government  that  it  should  stop  the  dis- 
graceful and  illegal  proceedings  of  Judge  McKean's  court.  The  influence  of  Sen- 
ator Morton  was  probably  the  first  and  most  potent  brought  to  bear  in  this  matter, 
and  immediately  thereafter  Senator  Lyman  Trumbull  threw  the  weight  of  his 
name  and  statesmanship  in  the  same  direction,  which  resulted  in  Baskin  and 
Maxwell  being  superseded,  .  .  .  and  finally  resulted  in  the  setting  aside  of  two 
years  of  McKean's  doings  as  illegal  by  the  august  decision  of  the  Supreme 
Court."  —  Tullidge,  "  History  of  Salt  Lake  City,"  p.  547. 

"  The  Attorney  for  the  Mormons  labored  assiduously  at  Washington,  and, 
contrary  to  the  usual  custom  in  the  Supreme  Court,  the  forthcoming  decision  had 
been  whispered  to  some  grateful  ears.  The  Mormon  anniversary  conference 
beginning  on  the  sixth  of  April  was  continued  over  without  adjournment  awaiting 
that  decision."  —  "  Rocky  Mountain  Saints,"  p.  688. 

"Thus  stood  affairs  during  the  winter  of  1870-71.  The  Gentiles  had  the 
courts,  the  Mormons  had  the  money.  In  the  spring  Nevada  came  over  to  run 
Utah.  Hon.  Thomas  Fitch  of  that  state  had  been  defeated  in  his  second  race 
for  Congress ;  so  he  came  to  Utah  as  Attorney  for  the  Mormons.  Senator  Stew- 
art and  other  Nevada  politicians  made  heavy  investments  in  Utah  mines ;  liti- 
gation multiplied  as  to  mining  titles,  and  Judge  McKean  did  not  rule  to  suit 
Utah.  .  .  .  The  great  Emma  mine,  worth  two  or  three  millions,  became  a  power 
in  our  judicial  embroglio.  The  Chief  Justice,  in  various  rulings,  favored  the  pres- 
ent occupants.  Nevada  called  upon  Senator  Stewart,  who  agreed  to  go  straight 
to  Long  Branch  and  see  that  McKean  was  removed.  But  Ulysses  the  Silent  .  .  . 
promptly  made  reply  that  if  Judge  McKean  had  committed  no  greater  fault  than 
to  revise  a  little  Nevada  law,  he  was  not  altogether  unpardonable."  —  Beadle, 
"  Polygamy,"  p.  429. 

The  Supreme  Court  decisions  left  the  federal  courts  in  Utah 
practically  powerless,  and  President  Grant  understood  this.     On 
February  14,  1873,  he  sent  a  special  message  to  Congress,  saying 
1  Wallace's  "  Reports,"  Vol.  XVIII,  p.  317. 


THE   LAST    YEARS   OF   BRIGHAM   YOUNG  571 

that  he  considered  it  necessary,  in  order  to  maintain  the  supremacy 
of  the  laws  of  the  United  States,  "  to  provide  that  the  selection 
of  grand  and  petit  jurors  for  the  district  courts  [of  Utah],  if  not 
put  under  the  control  of  federal  officers,  shall  be  placed  in  the 
hands  of  persons  entirely  independent  of  those  who  are  determined 
not  to  enforce  any  act  of  Congress  obnoxious  to  them,  and  also  to 
pass  some  act  which  shall  deprive  the  probate  courts,  or  any  court 
created  by  the  territorial  legislature,  of  any  power  to  interfere 
with  or  impede  the  action  of  the  courts  held  by  the  United  States 
judges." 

In  line  with  this  recommendation  Senator  Frelinghuysen  had 
introduced  a  bill  in  the  Senate  early  in  February,  which  the  Senate 
speedily  passed,  the  Democrats  and  Schurz,  Carpenter,  and  Trum- 
bull voting  against  it.  Mormon  influence  fought  it  with  despera- 
tion in  the  House,  and  in  the  closing  hours  of  the  session  had  it 
laid  aside.  The  diary  of  Delegate  Hooper  says  on  this  subject, 
"  Maxwell  [the  United  States  Marshal  for  Utah]  said  he  would 
take  out  British  papers  and  be  an  American  citizen  no  longer. 
Claggett  [Delegate  from  Montana]  asserted  that  we  had  spent 
$200,000  on  the  judiciary  committee,  and  Merritt  [Delegate  from 
Idaho]  swore  that  there  had  been  treachery  and  we  had  bribed 
Congress."  1 

In  the  election  of  1872  the  Mormons  dropped  Hooper,  who 
had  long  served  them  as  Delegate  at  Washington,  and  sent  in  his 
place  George  Q.  Cannon,  an  Englishman  by  birth  and  a  polyga- 
mist.  But  Mormon  influence  in  Washington  was  now  to  receive  a 
severe  check.  On  June  23,  1874,  the  President  approved  an  act 
introduced  by  Mr.  Poland  of  Vermont,  and  known  as  the  Poland 
Bill,2  which  had  important  results.     It  took  from  the  probate  courts 

1  The  Mormons  do  not  always  conceal  the  influences  they  employ  to  control  leg- 
islation in  which  they  are  interested.  Thus  Tullidge,  referring  to  the  men  of  whom  their 
Cooperative  Institution  buys  goods,  says  :  "  But  Z.  C.  M.  I.  has  not  only  a  commercial 
significance  in  the  history  of  our  city,  but  also  a  political  one.  It  has  long  been  the  tem- 
poral bulwark  around  the  Mormon  community.  Results  which  have  been  seen  in  Utah 
affairs,  preservative  of  the  Mormon  power  and  people,  unaccountable  to  '  the  outsider ' 
except  on  the  now  stale  supposition  that  'the  Mormon  Church  has  purchased  Con- 
gress,' may  be  better  traced  to  the  silent  but  potent  influence  of  Z.  C.  M.  I.  among  the 
ruling  business  men  of  America,  just  as  John  Sharp's  position  as  one  of  the  directors  of 

U.  P.  R r  —  a  compeer  among  such  men  as  Charles  Francis  Adams,  Jay  Gould  and 

Sidney  Dillon  —  gives  him  a  voice  in  Utah  affairs  among  the  railroad  rulers  of  America." 
—  "History  of  Salt  Lake  City,"  p.  734. 

2  Chap.  469,  1st  Session,  43d  Congress. 


572  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

in  Utah  all  civil,  chancery,  and  criminal  jurisdiction ;  made  the 
common  law  in  force ;  provided  that  the  United  States  attorney 
should  prosecute  all  criminal  cases  arising  in  the  United  States 
courts  in  the  territory  ;  that  the  United  States  marshal  should 
serve  and  execute  all  processes  and  writs  of  the  supreme  and  dis- 
trict courts,  and  that  the  clerk  of  the  district  court  in  each  district 
and  the  judge  of  probate  of  the  county  should  prepare  the  jury 
lists,  each  containing  two  hundred  names,  from  which  the  United 
States  marshal  should  draw  the  grand  and  petit  juries  for  the  term. 
It  further  provided  that,  when  a  woman  filed  a  bill  to  declare  void 
a  marriage  because  of  a  previous  marriage,  the  court  could  grant 
alimony ;  and  that,  in  any  prosecution  for  adultery,  bigamy,  or 
polygamy,  a  juror  could  be  challenged  if  he  practised  polygamy  or 
believed  in  its  righteousness. 

The  suit  for  divorce  brought  by  Young's  wife  "  No.  19,"  — Ann 
Eliza  Young — in  January,  1873,  attracted  attention  all  over  the 
country.  Her  bill  charged  neglect,  cruel  treatment,  and  desertion, 
set  forth  that  Young  had  property  worth  $8,000,000  and  an  income 
of  not  less  than  $40,000  a  year,  and  asked  for  an  allowance  of  $1000 
a  month  while  the  suit  was  pending,  $6000  for  preliminary  counsel 
fees,  and  $14,000  more  when  the  final  decree  was  made,  and  that 
she  be  awarded  $200,000  for  her  support.  Young  in  his  reply 
surprised  even  his  Mormon  friends.  After  setting  forth  his  legal 
marriage  in  Ohio,  stating  that  he  and  the  plaintiff  were  mem- 
bers of  a  church  which  held  the  doctrine  that  "  members  thereto 
might  rightfully  enter  into  plural  marriages,"  and  admitting  such  a 
marriage  in  this  case,  he  continued :  "  But  defendant  denies  that 
he  and  the  said  plaintiff  intermarried  in  any  other  or  different 
sense  or  manner  than  that  above  mentioned  or  set  forth.  Defen- 
dant further  alleges  that  the  said  complainant  was  then  informed 
by  the  defendant,  and  then  and  there  well  knew  that,  by  reason  of 
said  marriage,  in  the  manner  aforesaid,  she  could  not  have  and 
need  not  expect  the  society  or  personal  attention  of  this  defendant 
as  in  the  ordinary  relation  between  husband  and  wife."  He 
further  declared  that  his  property  did  not  exceed  $600,000  in  value, 
and  his  income  $6000  a  month. 

Judge  McKean,  on  February  25,  1875,  ordered  Young  to  pay 
Ann  Eliza  $3000  for  counsel  fees  and  $500  a  month  alimony 
pendente  lite,  and,  when  he  failed  to  obey,  sentenced  him  to  pay  a 


THE   LAST   YEARS   OF   BRIGHAM   YOUNG  573 

fine  of  $25  and  to  one  day's  imprisonment.  Young  was  driven  to 
his  own  residence  by  the  deputy  marshal  for  dinner,  and,  after 
taking  what  clothing  he  required,  was  conducted  to  the  penitentiary, 
where  he  was  locked  up  in  a  cell  for  a  short  time,  and  then  placed 
in  a  room  in  the  warden's  office  for  the  night. 

Judge  McKean  was  accused  of  inconsistency  in  granting  ali- 
mony, because,  in  so  doing,  he  had  to  give  legal  sanction  to  Ann 
Eliza's  marriage  to  Brigham  while  the  latter's  legal  wife  was  living. 
Judge  McKean's  successor,  Judge  D.  P.  Loew,  refused  to  imprison 
Young,  taking  the  ground  that  there  had  been  no  valid  marriage. 
Loew's  successor,  Judge  Boreman,  ordered  Young  imprisoned  until 
the  amount  due  was  paid,  but  he  was  left  at  his  house  in  custody 
of  the  marshal.  Boreman's  successor,  Judge  White,  freed  Young 
on  the  ground  that  Boreman's  order  was  void.  White's  successor, 
Judge  Schaeffer,  in  1876  reduced  the  alimony  to  $100  per  month, 
and,  in  default  of  payment,  certain  of  Young's  property  was  sold 
at  auction  and  rents  were  ordered  seized  to  make  up  the  deficiency. 
The  divorce  case  came  to  trial  in  April,  1877,  when  Judge  Schaeffer 
decreed  that  the  polygamous  marriage  was  void,  annulled  all  orders 
for  alimony,  and  assessed  the  costs  against  the  defendant. 

Nothing  further  of  great  importance  affecting  the  relations  of 
the  church  with  the  federal  government  occurred  during  the  rest 
of  Young's  life.  Governor  Woods  incurred  the  animosity  of  the 
Mormons  by  asserting  his  authority  from  time  to  time  ("he 
intermeddled,"  Bancroft  says).  In  1874  he  was  succeeded  by  S.  B. 
Axtell  of  California,  who  showed  such  open  sympathy  with  the 
Mormon  view  of  his  office  as  to  incur  the  severest  censure  of  the 
non-Mormon  press.  Axtell  was  displaced  in  the  following  year  by 
G.  B.  Emery  of  Tennessee,  who  held  office  until  the  early  part  of 
1880,  when  he  was  succeeded  by  Eli  H.  Murray.1 

1  Governor  Murray  showed  no  disposition  to  yield  to  Mormon  authority.  In  his 
message  in  1882  he  referred  pointedly,  among  other  matters,  to  the  tithing,  declaring 
that  "  the  poor  man  who  earns  a  dollar  by  the  sweat  of  his  brow  is  entitled  to  that  dol- 
lar," and  that  "  any  exaction  or  undue  influence  to  dispossess  him  of  any  part  of  it,  in 
any  other  manner  than  in  payment  of  a  legal  obligation,  is  oppression,"  and  he  granted 
a  certificate  of  election  as  Delegate  to  Congress  to  Allan  G.  Campbell,  who  received  only 
1350  votes  to  18,568  for  George  Q.  Cannon,  holding  that  the  latter  was  not  a  citizen. 
Governor  Murray's  resignation  was  accepted  in  March,  1886,  and  he  was  succeeded  in 
the  following  May  by  Caleb  W.  West,  who,  in  turn,  was  supplanted  in  May,  1889,  by 
A.  L.  Thomas,  who  was  territorial  governor  when  Utah  was  admitted  as  a  state. 


CHAPTER   XXII 
BRIGHAM   YOUNG'S   DEATH  — HIS   CHARACTER 

Brigham  Young  died  in  Salt  Lake  City  at  4  p.m.  on  Wednes- 
day, August  29,  1877.  He  was  attacked  with  acute  cholera  mor- 
bus on  the  evening  of  the  23d,  after  delivering  an  address  in  the 
Council  House,  and  it  was  followed  by  inflammation  of  the  bowels. 
The  body  lay  in  state  in  the  Tabernacle  from  Saturday,  Septem- 
ber 1,  until  Sunday  noon,  when  the  funeral  services  were  held. 
He  was  buried  in  a  little  plot  on  one  of  the  main  streets  of  Salt 
Lake  City,  not  far  from  his  place  of  residence. 

The  steps  by  which  Young  reached  the  position  of  head  of  "the 
Mormon  church,  the  character  of  his  rule,  and  the  means  by  which 
he  maintained  it  have  been  set  forth  in  the  previous  chapters  of 
this  work.  In  the  ruler  we  have  seen  a  man  without  education, 
but  possessed  of  an  iron  will,  courage  to  take  advantage  of  unusual 
opportunities,  and  a  thorough  knowledge  of  his  flock  gained  by 
association  with  them  in  all  their  wanderings.  In  his  people  we 
have  seen  a  nucleus  of  fanatics,  including  some  of  Joseph  Smith's 
fellow-plotters,  constantly  added  to  by  new  recruits,  mostly  poor 
and  ignorant  foreigners,  who  had  been  made  to  believe  in  Smith's 
Bible  and  "revelations,"  and  been  further  lured  to  a  change  of 
residence  by  false  pictures  of  the  country  they  were  going  to,  and 
the  business  opportunities  that  awaited  them  there.  Having  made 
a  prominent  tenet  of  the  church  the  practice  of  polygamy,  which 
Young  certainly  knew  the  federal  government  would  not  approve, 
he  had  an  additional  bond  with  which  to  unite  the  interests  of  his 
flock  with  his  own,  and  thus  to  make  them  believe  his  approval  as 
necessary  to  their  personal  safety  as  they  believed  it  to  be  neces- 
sary to  their  salvation.  The  command  which  Young  exercised  in 
these  circumstances  is  not  an  illustration  of  any  form  of  leader- 
ship which  can  be  held  up  to  admiration.     It  is  rather  an  exempli- 

574 


BRIGHAM   YOUNG'S   DEATH  — HIS   CHARACTER  575 

fication    of   that   tyranny  in   church    and    state  which    the  world 
condemns  whenever  an  example  of  it  is  afforded. 

Young  was  the  centre  of  responsibility  for  all  the  rebellion, 
nullification,  and  crime  carried  on  under  the  authority  of  the  church 
while  he  was  its  head.  He  never  concealed  his  own  power.  He 
gloried  in  it,  and  declared  it  openly  in  and  out  of  the  Tabernacle. 
Authority  of  this  kind  cannot  be  divided.  Whatever  credit  is  due 
to  Young  for  securing  it,  is  legitimately  his.  But  those  who  point 
to  its  acquisition  as  a  sign  of  greatness,  must  accept  for  him,  with 
it,  responsibility  for  the  crimes  that  were  carried  on  under  it. 

The  laudators  of  Young  have  found  evidence  of  great  execu- 
tive ability  in  his  management  of  the  migration  from  Nauvoo  to 
Utah.  But,  in  the  first  place,  this  migration  was  compulsory ;  the  • 
Mormons  were  obliged  to  move.  In  the  second  place  its  accom- 
plishment was  no  more  successful  than  the  contemporary  migra- 
tions to  Oregon,  and  the  loss  of  life  in  the  camps  on  the  Missouri 
River  was  greater  than  that  incurred  in  the  great  rush  across  the 
plains  to  California ;  while  the  horrors  of  the  hand-cart  movement 
—  a  scheme  of  Young's  own  device  —  have  never  been  equalled  in 
Western  travel.  In  Utah,  circumstances  greatly  favored  Young's 
success.  Had  not  gold  been  discovered  when  it  was  in  California, 
the  Mormon  settlement  would  long  have  been  like  a  dot  in  a 
desert,  and  its  ability  to  support  the  stream  of  immigrants  attracted 
from  Europe  would  have  been  problematic,  since,  in  more  than 
one  summer,  those  already  there  had  narrowly  escaped  starvation 
while  depending  on  the  agricultural  resources  of  the  valley. 

J.  Hyde,  writing  in  1857,  said  that  Young  "by  the  native  force 
and  vigor  of  a  strong  mind  "  had  taken  from  beneath  the  Mormon 
church  system  "  the  monstrous  stilts  of  a  miserable  superstition, 
and  consolidated  it  into  a  compact  scheme  of  the  sternest  fanati- 
cism." 2  In  other  words,  he  might  have  explained,  instead  of 
relying  on  such  "  revelations  "  as  served  Smith,  he  refused  to  use 
artificial  commands  of  God,  and  substituted  the  commands  of 
Young,  teaching,  and  having  his  associates  teach,  that  obedience 
to  the  head  of  the  church  was  obedience  to  the  Supreme  Power. 
Both  Hyde  and  Stenhouse,  writing  before  Young's  death,  and  as 
witnesses  of  the  strength  of  his  autocratic  government,  overesti- 
mated him.     This  is  seen  in  the  view  they  took  of  the  effect  of  his 

1  "  Mormonism,"  p.  151. 


576  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

death.  Hyde  declared  that  under  any  of  the  other  contemporary 
leaders  —  Taylor,  Kimball,  Orson  Hyde,  or  Pratt:  "  Mormonism 
will  decline.  Brigham  is  its  sun  ;  this  is  its  daytime."  Stenhouse 
asserted  that,  "  Theocracy  will  die  out  with  Brigham's  flickering 
flame  of  life ;  and,  when  he  is  laid  in  the  tomb,  many  who  are 
silent  now  will  curse  his  memory  for  the  cruel  suffering  that  his 
ambition  caused  them  to  endure."  But  all  such  prophecies  remain 
unfulfilled.  Young's  death  caused  no  more  revolution  or  change 
in  the  Mormon  church  than  does  the  death  of  a  pope  in  the 
Church  of  Rome.  "  Regret  it  who  may,"  wrote  a  Salt  Lake  City 
correspondent  less  than  three  months  after  his  burial,  "  the  fact  is 
visible  to  every  intelligent  person  here  that  Mormonism  has  taken 
a  new  lease  of  life,  and,  instead  of  disintegration,  there  never  was 
such  unity  among  its  people ;  and  in  the  place  of  a  rapidly  dying 
consumptive,  whose  days  were  numbered,  the  body  of  the  church 
is  the  picture  of  pristine  health  and  vigor,  with  all  the  ambition 
and  enthusiasm  of  a  first  love."  1  The  new  leadership  has,  grudg- 
ingly, traded  polygamy  for  statehood ;  but  the  church  power  is  as 
strong  and  despotic  and  unified  to-day  on  the  lines  on  which  it  is 
working  as  it  was  under  Young,  only  exercising  that  power  on  the 
more  civilized  basis  rendered  necessary  by  closer  connection  with 
an  outside  civilization. 

Young  was  a  successful  accumulator  of  property  for  his  own 
use.  A  poor  man  when  he  set  out  from  Nauvoo,  his  estate  at  his 
death  was  valued  at  between  $2,000,000  and  $3,000,000.  This  was 
a  great  accumulation  for  a  pioneer  who  had  settled  in  a  wilderness, 
been  burdened  with  a  polygamous  family  of  over  twenty  wives 
and  fifty  children,  and  the  cares  of  a  church  denomination,  without 
salary  as  a  church  officer.  "  I  am  the  only  person  in  the  church," 
Young  said  to  Greeley  in  1859,  "who  has  not  a  regular  calling 
apart  from  the  church  service  "  ;  and  he  added,  "  We  think  a  man 
who  cannot  make  his  living  aside  from  the  ministry  of  the  church 
unsuited  to  that  office.  I  am  called  rich,  and  consider  myself 
worth  $250,000;  but  no  dollar  of  it  ever  was  paid  me  by  the 
church,  nor  for  any  service  as  a  minister  of  the  Everlasting  Gos- 
pel." 2  Two  years  after  his  death  a  writer  in  the  Salt  Lake  Trib- 
ttnez  asserted  that  Young  had  secured  in  Utah  from  the  tithing 

1  New  York  Times,  November  23,  1877. 

2  "  Overland  Journey,"  p.  213.  8  June  25,  1879. 


BRIGHAM    YOUNG'S   DEATH  — HIS   CHARACTER  577 

$13,000,000,  squandered  about  $9,000,000  on  his  family,  and  left 
the  rest  to  be  fought  for  by  his  heirs  and  assigns.1  Notwithstand- 
ing the  vast  sums  taken  by  him  in  tithing  for  the  alleged  benefit 
of  the  poor,  there  was  not  in  Salt  Lake  City,  at  the  time  of  his 
death,  a  single  hospital  or  "home  "  creditable  to  that  settlement. 

The  mere  acquisition  of  his  wealth  no  more  entitled  Young  to 
be  held  up  as  a  marvellous  man  of  business  than  did  Tweed's  ac- 
cumulations give  him  this  distinction  in  New  York.  Beadle  de- 
clares that  "  Brigham  never  made  a  success  of  any  business  he 
undertook  except  managing  the  Mormons,"  and  cites  among  his 
business  failures  the  non-success  of  every  distant  colony  he  planted, 
the  Cottonwood  Canal  (whose  mouth  was  ten  feet  higher  than  its 
source),  his  beet-sugar  manufactory,  and  his  Colorado  Transporta- 
tion Company  (to  bring  goods  for  southern  Utah  up  the  Colorado 
River).2 

The  reports  of  Young's  discourses  in  the  Temple  show  that  he 
was  as  determined  in  carrying  out  his  own  financial  schemes  as  he 
was  in  enforcing  orders  pertaining  to  the  church.  Here  is  an 
almost  humorous  illustration  of  this.  In  urging  the  people  one 
day  to  be  more  regular  in  paying  their  tithing,  he  said  they  need 
not  fear  that  he  would  make  a  bad  use  of  their  money,  as  he  had 
plenty  of  his  own,  adding  :  — 

"  I  believe  I  will  tell  you  how  I  get  some  of  it.  A  great  many  of  these 
elders  in  Israel,  soon  after  courting  these  young  ladies,  and  old  ladies,  and  mid- 
dle-aged ladies,  and  having  them  sealed  to  them,  want  to  have  a  bill  of  divorce. 
I  have  told  them  from  the  beginning  that  sealing  men  and  women  for  time  and 
all  eternity  is  one  of  the  ordinances  of  the  House  of  God,  and  that  I  never  wanted 
a  farthing  for  sealing  them,  nor  for  officiating  in  any  of  the  ordinances  of  God's 
house.  But  when  you  ask  for  a  bill  of  divorce,  I  intend  that  you  shall  pay  for  it.  & 
That  keeps  me  in  spending  money,  besides  enabling  me  to  give  hundreds  of  dol- 
lars to  the  poor,  and  buy  butter,  eggs,  and  little  notions  for  women  and  children, 
and  otherwise  use  it  where  it  does  good.  You  may  think  this  a  singular  feature 
of  the  Gospel,  but  I  cannot  exactly  say  that  this  is  in  the  Gospel."  3 

1  "  Having  control  of  the  tithing,  and  possessing  unlimited  credit,  he  has  added 
« house  to  house  and  field  to  field,'  while  every  one  knew  that  he  had  no  personal  enter- 
prises sufficient  to  enable  him  to  meet  anything  like  the  current  expenses  of  his  numer- 
ous wives  and  children.  As  trustee  in  trust  he  renders  no  account  of  the  funds  that 
come  into  his  hands,  but  tells  the  faithful  that  they  are  at  perfect  liberty  to  examine  the 
books  at  any  moment."  —  "Rocky  Mountain  Saints,"  p.  665. 

2  "  Polygamy,"  p.  484. 

8  Deseret  News,  March  20,  1861. 
2P 


57S  THE   STORY   OF   THE  MORMONS 

For  such  an  openly  jolly  old  hypocrite  one  can  scarcely  resist 
the  feeling  that  he  would  like  to  pass  around  the  hat. 

We  have  seen  how  Young  gave  himself  control  of  a  valuable 
canon.  That  was  only  the  beginning  of  such  acquisitions.  The 
territorial  legislature  of  Utah  was  continually  making  special 
grants  to  him.  Among  them  may  be  mentioned  the  control  of 
City  Creek  Canon  (said  to  have  been  worth  $10,000  a  year)  on 
payment  of  $500 ;  of  the  waters  of  Mill  Creek ;  exclusive  right  to 
Kansas  Prairie  as  a  herd-ground ;  the  whole  of  Cache  Valley  for  a 
herd-ground ;  Rush  Valley  for  a  herd-ground ;  rights  to  establish 
ferries;  an  appropriation  of  $2500  for  an  academy  in  Salt  Lake 
City  (which  was  not  built),  etc.1 

Young's  holdings  of  real  estate  were  large,  not  only  in  Salt 
Lake  City,  but  in  almost  every  county  in  the  territory.2  Besides 
city  lots  and  farm  lands,  he  owned  grist  and  saw  mills,  and  he  took 
care  that  his  farms  were  well  cultivated  and  that  his  mills  made 
fine  flour.3 

As  trustee  in  trust  for  the  church  Young  had  control  of  all 
the  church  property  and  income,  practically  without  responsibility 
or  oversight.  Mrs.  Waite  (writing  in  1866)  said  that  attempts  for 
many  years  by  the  General  Conference  to  procure  a  balance  sheet 
of  receipts  and  expenditures  had  failed,  and  that  the  accounts  in 
the  tithing  office,  such  as  they  were,  were  kept  by  clerks  who  were 
the  leading  actors  in  the  Salt  Lake  Theatre,  owned  by  Young.* 
It  was  openly  charged  that,  in  1852,  Young  "balanced  his 
account"  with  the  church  by  having  the  clerk  credit  him  with 
the  amount  due  by  him,  "for  services  rendered,"  and  that,  in  1867, 
he  balanced  his  account  again  by  crediting  himself  with  $967,000. 
A  committee  appointed  to  investigate  the  accounts  of  Young  after 

1  Here  is  the  text  of  one  of  these  acts:  "Be  it  ordained  by  the  General  Assembly 
of  the  State  of  Deseret  that  Brigham  Young  has  the  sole  control  of  City  Creek  and 
Caflon;  and  that  he  pay  into  the  public  treasury  the  sum  of  $500  therefor.    Dec.  9,  1850." 

2  "  For  several  years  past  the  agent  of  the  church,  A.  M.  Musser,  has  been  engaged 
in  securing  legal  deeds  for  all  the  property  the  prophet  claims,  and  by  this  he  will  be 
able  to  secure  in  his  lifetime  to  his  different  families  such  property  as  will  render  them 
independent  at  his  death.  The  building  of  the  Pacific  Railroad  is  said  to  have  yielded 
him  about  a  quarter  of  a  million."  —  "Rocky  Mountain  Saints,"  p.  666. 

8  "  His  position  secured  him  also  many  valuable  presents.  From  a  barrel  of  brandy 
down  to  an  umbrella,  Brigham  receives  courteously  and  remembers  the  donors  with 
increased  kindness.  I  saw  one  man  make  him  a  present  of  ten  fine  milch  cows."  — 
Hyde,  "  Mormonism,"  p.  165. 

4  "The  Mormon  Prophet,"  pp.  148-149. 


BRIGHAM   YOUNG'S   DEATH  — HIS   CHARACTER 


579 


his  death  reported  to  the  Conference  of  October,  1878,  that  "for 
the  sole  purpose  of  preserving  it  from  the  spoliation  of  the  enemy," 
he  "  had  transferred  certain  property  from  the  possession  of  the 
church  to  his  own  individual  possession,"  but  that  it  had  been 
transferred  back  again. 

Young's  will  divided  his  wives  and  children  into  nineteen 
"classes,"  and  directed  his  executors  to  pay  to  each  such  a  sum 
as  might  be  necessary  for  their  comfortable  support;  the  word 
"marriage"  in  the  will  to  mean  "either  by  ceremony  before  a 
lawful  magistrate,  or  according  to  the  order  of  the  Church  of 
Jesus  Christ  of  Latter-Day  Saints,  or  by  their  cohabitation  in  con- 
formity to  our  custom." 

On  June  14,  1879,  Emmeline  A.  Young,  on  behalf  of  herself 
and  the  heirs  at  law,  began  a  suit  against  the  executors  of  Young's 
estate,  charging  that  they  had  improperly  appropriated  $200,000 ; 
had  improperly  allowed  nearly  $1,000,000  to  John  Taylor  as 
trustee  in  trust  to  the  church,  less  a  credit  of  $300,000  for  Young's 
services  as  trustee ;  and  that  they  claimed  the  power,  as  members 
of  the  Apostles'  Quorum,  to  dispose  of  all  the  testator's  property 
and  to  disinherit  any  heir  who  refused  to  submit.  This  suit  was 
compromised  in  the  following  September,  the  seven  persons  join- 
ing in  it  executing  a  release  on  payment  of  $75,000.  A  suit  which 
the  church  had  begun  against  the  heirs  and  executors  was  also 
discontinued.  The  Salt  Lake  Herald  (Mormon)  of  October  5, 
1879,  said,  "The  adjustment  is  far  preferable  to  a  continuance  of 
the  suit,  which  was  proving  not  only  expensive,  but  had  become 
excessively  annoying  to  many  people,  was  a  large  disturbing  ele- 
ment in  the  community,  and  was  rapidly  descending  into  paths 
that  nobody  here  cares  to  see  trodden." 

Just  how  many  wives  Brigham  Young  had,  in  the  course  of  his 
life,  would  depend  on  his  own  and  others'  definition  of  that  term. 
He  told  Horace  Greeley,  in  1859:  "  I  have  fifteen ;  I  know  no  one 
who  has  more.  But  some  of  those  sealed  to  me  are  old  ladies, 
whom  I  regard  rather  as  mothers  than  wives,  but  whom  I  have 
taken  home  to  cherish  and  support."1  In  1869,  he  informed  the 
Boston  Board  of  Trade,  when  that  body  visited  Salt  Lake  City, 
that  he  had  sixteen  wives  living,  and  had  lost  four,  and  that  forty- 
nine  of  his  children  were  living  then.     "  He  was,"  says  Beadle, 

1  "Overland  Journey,"  p.  215. 


58o 


THE   STORY   OF  THE   MORxMONS 


"  sealed  on  the  spiritual  wife  system  to  more  women  than  any  one 
can  count ;  all  over  Mormondom  are  pious  old  widows,  or  wives 
of  Gentiles  and  apostates,  who  hope  to  rise  at  the  last  day  and 
claim  a  celestial  share  in  Brigham."  J.  Hyde  said  that  he  knew  of 
about  twenty-five  wives  with  whom  Brigham  lived.  The  following 
list  is  made  up  from  "  Pictures  and  Biographies  of  Brigham  Young 
and  his  Wives,"  published  by  J.  H.  Crockwell  of  Salt  Lake  City, 
by  authority  of  Young's  eldest  son  and  of  seven  of  his  wives,  but 
is  not  complete  :  — 


Number  of 

Name 

Date  of  Marriage 

Children 

Mary  Ann  Angell l     . 

February,  1834.     Ohio 

6 

Louisa  Beman2  . 

April,  1 841.     Nauvoo 

4 

Mrs.  Lucy  Decker  Seely    . 

June,  1842.     Nauvoo 

7 

H.  E.  C.  Campbell     . 

November,  1843.     Nauvoo 

1 

Augusta  Adams 

November,  1843.     Nauvoo 

0 

Clara  Decker 

May,  1844.     Nauvoo 

5 

Clara  C.  Ross     . 

September,  1844.     Nauvoo 

4 

Emily  Dow  Partridge  2 

September,  1844.     Nauvoo 

7 

Susan  Snively    . 

November,  1844.     Nauvoo 

0 

Olive  Grey  Frost 2 

February,  1845.     Nauvoo 

0 

Emmeline  Free 

April,  1845.     Nauvoo 

0 

Margaret  Pierce 

April,  1845.     Nauvoo 

1 

N.  K.  T.  Carter 

January,  1846.     Nauvoo 

0 

Ellen  Rockwood 

January,  1846.     Nauvoo 

0 

Maria  Lawrence  2 

January,  1846.     Nauvoo 

0 

Martha  Bowker 

January,  1846.     Nauvoo 

0 

Margaret  M.  Alley     . 

January,  1846.     Nauvoo 

2 

Lucy  Bigelow     . 

March,  1847.     (?) 

3 

Z.  D.  Huntington2    . 

March,  1847  (?).     Nauvoo 

1 

Eliza  K.  Snow2 

June,  1849.     S.  L.  C. 

0 

Eliza  Burgess     . 

October,  1850.     S.  L.  C. 

1 

Harriet  Barney  . 

October,  1850.     S.  L.  C. 

1 

Harriet  A.  Folsom     . 

January,  1863.     S.L.  C. 

0 

Mary  Van  Cott 

January,  1865.     S.L.  C. 

1 

Ann  Eliza  Webb        .    . 

April,  1868.     S.  L.  C. 

0 

Young's  principal  houses  in  Salt  Lake  City  stood  at  the  south- 
eastern corner  of  the  block  adjoining  the  Temple  block,  and  desig- 
nated on  the  map  as  block  8.     The  largest  building,  occupying  the 

1  His  first  wife  died  1832.  2  Joseph  Smith's  widows. 


BRIGHAM   YOUNG'S   DEATH— HIS   CHARACTER  581 

corner,  was  called  the  Beehive  House ;  connected  with  this  was  a 
smaller  building  in  which  were  Young's  private  offices,  the  tithing 
office,  etc ;  and  next  to  this  was  a  building  partly  of  stone,  called 
the  Lion  House,  taking  its  name  from  the  figure  of  a  lion  sculp- 
tured on  its  front,  representing  Young's  title  "The  Lion  of  the 
Lord."  When  J.  Hyde  wrote,  seventeen  or  eighteen  of  Young's 
wives  dwelt  in  the  Lion  House,  and  the  Beehive  House  became 
his  official  residence.1  Individual  wives  were  provided  for  else- 
where. His  legal  wife  lived  in  what  was  called  the  White  House, 
a  few  hundred  yards  from  his  official  home.  His  well-beloved 
Amelia  lived  in  another  house  half  a  block  distant ;  another  favor- 
ite, just  across  the  street;  Emmeline,  on  the  same  block;  and  not 
far  away  the  latest  acquisition  to  his  harem. 

Young's  life  in  his  later  years  was  a  very  orderly  one,  although 
he  was  not  methodical  in  arranging  his  office  hours  and  attending  to 
his  many  duties.  Rising  before  eight  a.m.,  he  was  usually  in  his 
office  at  nine,  transacting  business  with  his  secretary,  and  was 
ready  to  receive  callers  at  ten.  So  many  were  the  people  who  had 
occasion  to  see  him,  and  so  varied  were  the  matters  that  could  be 
brought  to  his  attention,  that  many  hours  would  be  devoted  to 
these  callers  if  other  engagements  did  not  interfere.  Once  a  year 
he  made  a  sort  of  visit  of  state  to  all  the  principal  settlements 
in  the  territory,  accompanied  by  counsellors,  apostles,  and  Bishops, 
and  sometimes  by  a  favorite  wife.  Shorter  excursions  of  the  same 
kind  were  made  at  other  times.  Each  settlement  was  expected  to 
give  him  a  formal  greeting,  and  this  sometimes  took  the  form  of  a 
procession  with  banners,  such  as  might  have  been  prepared  for  a 
conquering  hero. 

1  The  Beehive  House  is  still  the  official  residence  of  the  head  of  the  church,  and  in 
it  President  Snow  was  living  at  the  time  of  his  death.  The  office  building  is  still 
devoted  to  office  uses,  and  the  Lion  House  now  furnishes  temporary  quarters  to  the 
Latter-Day  Saints'  College. 


CHAPTER  XXIII 
SOCIAL  ASPECTS  OF  POLYGAMY 

There  was  something  compulsory  about  all  phases  of  life  in 
Utah  during  Brigham  Young's  regime  —  the  form  of  employment 
for  the  men,  the  domestic  regulations  of  the  women,  the  church 
duties  each  should  perform,  and  even  the  location  in  the  terri- 
tory which  they  should  call  their  home.  Not  only  did  large 
numbers  of  the  foreign  immigrants  find  themselves  in  debt  to  the 
church  on  their  arrival,  and  become  compelled  in  this  way  to  labor 
on  the  "  public  works  "  as  they  might  be  ordered,  but  the  skilled 
mechanics  who  brought  their  tools  with  them  in  most  cases  found 
on  their  arrival  that  existence  in  Utah  meant  a  contest  with  the 
soil  for  food.  Even  when  a  mechanic  obtained  employment  at  his 
trade  it  was  in  the  ruder  branches. 

Mormon  authorities  have  always  tried  to  show  that  Americans 
have  predominated  in  their  community.  Tullidge  classes  the 
population  in  this  order :  Americans,  English,  Scandinavian  (these 
claim  one-fifth  of  the  Mormon  population  of  Utah),  Scotch,  Welsh, 
Germans,  and  a  few  Irish,  French,  Italians,  and  Swiss.  The  com- 
bination of  new-comers  and  the  emigrants  from  Nauvoo  made  a 
rude  society  of  fanatics,1  before  whom  there  was  held  out  enough 
prospect  of  gain  in  land  values  (scarcely  one  of  the  immigrants  had 
ever  been  a  landowner)  to  overcome  a  good  deal  of  the  discontent 
natural  to  their  mode  of  life,  and  who,  in  religious  matters,  were 
held  in  control  by  a  priesthood,  against  whom  they  could  not  rebel 
without  endangering  that  hope  of  heaven  which  had  induced  them 
to  journey  across  the  ocean.  There  are  roughness  and  lawless- 
ness in  all  frontier  settlements,  but  this  Mormon  community  dif- 

l"I  have  discovered  thus  early  (1852)  that  little  deference  is  paid  to  women. 
Repeatedly,  in  my  long  walk  to  our  boarding  house,  I  was  obliged  to  retreat  back  from 
the  [street]  crossing  places  and  stand  on  one  side  for  men  to  cross  over.  There  are  said 
to  be  a  great  many  of  the  lower  order  of  English  here,  and  this  rudeness,  so  unusual  with 
our  countrymen,  may  proceed  from  them."  — Mrs.  Ferris,  "  Life  among  the  Mormons." 

582 


SOCIAL   ASPECTS  OF   POLYGAMY  583 

fered  from  all  other  gatherings  of  new  population  in  the  American 
West.  It  did  not  migrate  of  its  own  accord,  attracted  by  a  fertile 
soil  or  precious  ores ;  it  was  induced  to  migrate,  not  without  mis- 
representation concerning  material  prospects,  it  is  true,  but  mainly 
because  of  the  hope  that  by  doing  so  it  would  share  in  the  bless- 
ings and  protection  of  a  Zion.  The  gambling  hell  and  the  dance 
hall,  which  form  principal  features  of  frontier  mining  settlements, 
were  wanting  in  Salt  Lake  City,  and  the  absence  of  the  brothel 
was  pointed  to  as  evidence  of  the  moral  effect  of  polygamy. 

The  system  of  plural  marriages  left  its  impress  all  over  the 
home  life  of  the  territory.  Many  of  the  Mormon  leaders,  as  we 
have  seen,  had  more  wives  than  one  when  they  made  their  first 
trip  across  the  plains,  and  the  practice  of  polygamy,  while  denied 
on  occasion,  was  not  concealed  from  the  time  the  settlement  was 
made  in  the  valley  to  the  date  of  its  public  proclamation.  In  the 
early  days,  a  man  with  more  than  one  wife  provided  for  them  ac- 
cording to  his  means.  Young  began  with  quarters  better  than  the 
average,  but  modest  in  their  way,  and  finally  occupied  the  big 
buildings  which  cost  him  many  thousands  of  dollars.  If  a  man 
with  several  wives  had  the  means  to  do  so,  he  would  build  a  long, 
low  dwelling,  with  an  outside  door  for  each  wife,  and  thus  house 
all  under  the  same  roof  in  a  sort  of  separate  barracks.  When 
Gunnison  wrote,  in  1852,  there  were  many  instances  in  which 
more  than  one  wife  shared  the  same  house  when  it  contained  only 
one  apartment,  but  he  said  :  "It  is  usual  to  board  out  the  extra 
ones,  who  most  frequently  pay  their  own  way  by  sewing,  and  other 
female  employments."  Mrs.  Ferris  wrote :  "  The  mass  of  the 
dwellings  are  small,  low,  and  hutlike.  Some  of  them  literally 
swarmed  with  women  and  children,  and  had  an  aspect  of  extreme 
want  of  neatness.  .  .  .  One  family,  in  which  there  were  two  wives, 
was  living  in  a  small  hut  —  three  children  very  sick  [with  scarlet 
fever]  —  two  beds  and  a  cook-stove  in  the  same  room,  creating  the 
air  of  a  pest-house."  * 

Hyde,  describing  the  city  in  1857,  tnus  enumerated  the  home 
accommodations  of  some  of  the  leaders  :  — 

"  A  very  pretty  house  on  the  east  side  was  occupied  by  the  late  J.  M.  Grant 
and  his  five  wives.     A  large  barrack-like  house  on  the  corner  is  tenanted  by  Ezra 
T.  Benson  and  his  four  ladies.     A  large  but  mean-looking  house  to  the  west  was 
1  "Life  among  the  Mormons,"  pp.  Ill,  145. 


584  THE   STORY   OF  THE   MORMONS 

inhabited  by  the  late  Parley  P.  Pratt  and  his  nine  wives.  In  that  long,  dirty  row 
of  single  rooms,  half  hidden  by  a  very  beautiful  orchard  and  garden,  lived  Dr. 
Richard  and  his  eleven  wives.  Wilford  Woodruff  and  five  wives  reside  in  another 
large  house  still  further  west.  O.  Pratt  and  some  four  or  five  wives  occupy  an 
adjacent  building.  Looking  toward  the  north,  we  espy  a  whole  block  covered 
with  houses,  barns,  gardens,  and  orchards.  In  these  dwell  H.  C.  Kimball  and 
his  eighteen  or  twenty  wives,  their  families  and  dependents."  l 

Horace  Greeley,  prejudiced  as  he  was  in  favor  of  the  Mormons 
when  he  visited  Salt  Lake  City  in  1859,  was  forced  to  observe:  — 

"  The  degradation  (or,  if  you  please,  the  restriction)  of  woman  to  the  single 
office  of  childbearing  and  its  accessories  is  an  inevitable  consequence  of  the 
system  here  paramount.  I  have  not  observed  a  sign  in  the  streets,  an  advertise- 
ment in  the  journals,  of  this  Mormon  metropolis,  whereby  a  woman  proposes  to 
do  anything  whatever.  No  Mormon  has  ever  cited  to  me  his  wife's  or  any 
woman's  opinion  on  any  subject ;  no  Mormon  woman  has  been  introduced  or 
spoken  to  me ;  and,  though  I  have  been  asked  to  visit  Mormons  in  their  houses, 
no  one  has  spoken  of  his  wife  (or  wives)  desiring  to  see  me,  or  his  desiring  me 
to  make  her  (or  their)  acquaintance,  or  voluntarily  indicated  the  existence  of  such 
a  being  or  beings.1'2 

Woman's  natural  jealousy,  and  the  suffering  that  a  loving  wife 
would  endure  when  called  upon  to  share  her  husband's  affection 
and  her  home  with  other  women,  would  seem  to  form  a  sort  of 
natural  check  to  polygamous  marriages.  But  in  Utah  this  check 
was  overcome  both  by  the  absolute  power  of  the  priesthood  over 
their  flock,  and  by  the  adroit  device  of  making  polygamy  not 
merely  permissive,  but  essential  to  eternal  salvation.  That  the 
many  wives  of  even  so  exalted  a  prophet  as  Brigham  Young  could 
become  rebellious  is  shown  by  the  language  employed  by  him 
in  his  discourse  of  September  21,  1856,  of  which  the  following  will 
suffice  as  a  specimen :  — 

"  Men  will  say,  '  My  wife,  though  a  most  excellent  woman,  has  not  seen  a 
happy  day  since  I  took  my  second  wife ;  no,  not  a  happy  day  for  a  year.'  .  .  . 
I  wish  my  women  to  understand  that  what  I  am  going  to  say  is  for  them,  as  well 
as  all  others,  and  I  want  those  who  are  here  to  tell  their  sisters,  yes,  all  the  women 
in  this  community,  and  then  write  it  back  to  the  states,  and  do  as  you  please  with 
it.     I  am  going  to  give  you  from  this  time  till  the  6th  day  of  October  next  for  re- 

1  "  Mormonism,"  p.  34.  The  number  of  wives  of  the  church  leaders  decreased  in 
later  years.  Beadle,  giving  the  number  of  wives  "  supposed  to  appertain  to  each  "  in 
1882,  credits  President  Taylor  with  four  (three  having  died),  and  the  Apostles  with  an 
average  of  three  each,  Erastus  Snow  having  five,  and  four  others  only  two  each. 

2  "Overland  Journey,"  p.  217. 


SOCIAL   ASPECTS   OF   POLYGAMY  585 

flection,  that  you  may  determine  whether  you  wish  to  stay  with  your  husbands  or 
not,  and  then  I  am  going  to  set  every  woman  at  liberty,  and  say  to  them,  'Now 
go  your  way,  my  women  with  the  rest  ;  go  your  way.'  And  my  wives  have  got 
to  do  one  of  two  things  ;  either  round  up  their  shoulders  to  endure  the  afflictions 
of  this  world,  and  live  their  religion,  or  they  may  leave,  for  I  will  not  have  them 
about  me.  I  will  go  into  heaven  alone,  rather  than  have  scratching  and  fighting 
all  around  me.  I  will  set  all  at  liberty.  '  What,  first  wife  too  ? '  Yes.  I  will  liber- 
ate you  all.  I  know  what  my  women  will  say ;  they  will  say,  '  You  can  have  as 
many  women  as  you  please,  Brigham.'  But  I  want  to  go  somewhere  and  do 
something  to  get  rid  of  the  winners.  .  .  .     Sisters,  I  am  not  joking." l 

Grant,  on  the  same  day,  in  connection  with  his  presentation  of 
the  doctrine  of  blood  atonement,  declared  that  there  was  "  scarcely 
a  mother  in  Israel "  who  would  not,  if  they  could,  "  break  asunder 
the  cable  of  the  Church  in  Christ ;  and  they  talk  it  to  their  hus- 
bands, to  their  daughters,  and  to  their  neighbors,  and  say  that 
they  have  not  seen  a  week's  happiness  since  they  became  ac- 
quainted with  that  law,  or  since  their  husbands  took  a  second 
wife."  2  The  coarse  and  plain-spoken  H.  C.  Kimball,  in  a  discourse 
in  the  Tabernacle,  November  9,  1856,  thus  defined  the  duty  of 
polygamous  wives,  "  It  is  the  duty  of  a  woman  to  be  obedient  to 
her  husband,  and,  unless  she  is,  I  would  not  give  a  damn  for  all 
her  queenly  right  or  authority,  nor  for  her  either,  if  she  will  quar- 
rel and  lie  about  the  work  of  God  and  the  principles  of  plurality."3 

Gentile  observers  were  amazed,  in  the  earlier  days  of  Utah,  to 
see  to  what  lengths  the  fanatical  teachings  of  the  church  officers 
would  be  accepted  by  women.  Thus  Mrs.  Ferris  found  that  the 
explanation  of  the  willingness  of  many  young  women  in  Utah  to 
be  married  to  venerable  church  officers,  who  already  had  harems,  1/ 
was  their  belief  that  they  could  only  be  "saved"  if  married  or 
sealed  to  a  faithful  Saint,  and  that  an  older  man  was  less  likely  to 
apostatize,  and  so  carry  his  wives  to  perdition  with  him,  than  a 
young  one ;  therefore  "  it  became  an  object  with  these  silly  fools 
to  get  into  the  harems  of  the  priests  and  elders." 

If  this  advantage  of  the  church  officers  in  the  selection  of  new 
wives  did  not  avail,  other  means  were  employed,4  as  in  the  noto- 
rious San  Pete  case.  The  officers  remaining  at  home  did  not 
hesitate  to  insist  on  a  fair  division    of   the   spoils  (that   is,  the 

1  Journal  of  Discourses,  Vol.  IV,  p.  55.  2  Ibid.,  p.  52. 

8  Deseret  News,  Vol.  VI,  p.  291. 

*  Conan  Doyle's  story,  "  A  Study  in  Scarlet,"  is  founded  on  the  use  of  this  power. 


/ 


586  THE   STORY   OF  THE   MORMONS 

marriageable  immigrants),  as  is  shown  by  the  following  remarks  of 
Heber  C.  Kimball  to  some  missionaries  about  starting  out :  "  Let 
truth  and  righteousness  be  your  motto,  and  don't  go  into  the 
world  for  anything  but  to  preach  the  Gospel,  build  up  the  Kingdom 
of  God,  and  gather  the  sheep  into  the  fold.  You  are  sent  out  as 
shepherds  to  gather  the  sheep  together ;  and  remember  that  they 
are  not  your  sheep  ;  they  belong  to  Him  that  sends  you.  Then 
don't  make  a  choice  of  any  of  those  sheep ;  don't  make  selections 
before  they  are  brought  home  and  put  into  the  fold.  You  under- 
stand that.  Amen."  Mr.  Ferris  thus  described  the  use  of  his 
priestly  power  made  by  Wilford  Woodruff,  who,  as  head  of  the 
church  in  later  years,  gave  out  the  advice  about  abandoning 
polygamy :  "  Woodruff  has  a  regular  system  of  changing  his 
harem.  He  takes  in  one  or  more  young  girls,  and  so  manages, 
after  he  tires  of  them,  that  they  are  glad  to  ask  for  a  divorce,  after 
which  he  beats  the  bush  for  recruits.  He  took  a  fresh  one,  about 
fourteen  years  old,  in  March,  1853,  and  will  probably  get  rid  of 
her  in  the  course  of  the  ensuing  summer."  1 

Mrs.  Waite  thus  relates  a  conversation  she  had  with  a  Mormon 
wife  about  her  husband  going  into  polygamy  :  — 

" '  Oh,  it  is  hard,'  she  said,  '  very  hard  ;  but  no  matter,  we  must  bear  it.  It  is 
a  correct  principle,  and  there  is  no  salvation  without  it.  We  had  one  [wife]  but 
it  was  so  hard,  both  for  my  husband  and  myself,  that  we  could  not  endure  it,  and 
she  left  us  at  the  end  of  seven  months.  She  had  been  with  us  as  a  servant  several 
months,  and  was  a  good  girl ;  but  as  soon  as  she  was  made  a  wife  she  became 
insolent,  and  told  me  she  had  as  good  a  right  to  the  house  and  things  as  I  had, 
and  you  know  that  didn't  suit  me  well.  But,'  continued  she,  'I  wish  we  had 
kept  her,  and  I  had  borne  everything,  for  we  have  got  to  have  one,  and  don't  you 
think  it  would  be  pleasanter  to  have  one  you  had  known  than  a  stranger  ?"" 

The  voice  which  the  first  wife  had  in  the  matter  was  defined  in 
the  Seer  (Vol.  I,  p.  41).  If  she  objected,  she  could  state  her  objec- 
tion to  President  Young,  who,  if  he  found  the  reason  sufficient, 
could  forbid  the  marriage;  but  if  he  considered  that  her  reason 
was  not  good,  then  the  marriage  could  take  place,  and  "  he  [the 
husband]  will  be  justified,  and  she  will  be  condemned,  because  she 
did  not  give  them  unto  him  as  Sarah  gave  Hagar  to  Abraham, 

1  "  Utah  and  the  Mormons,"  p.  255. 

2  "  The  Mormon  Prophet,"  p.  260.  Many  accounts  of  the  feeling  of  first  wives 
regarding  polygamy  may  be  found  in  this  book  and  in  Mrs.  Stenhouse's  "  Tell  it  All." 


SOCIAL   ASPECTS   OF   POLYGAMY  587 

and  as  Rachel  and  Leah  gave  Bilhah  and  Zilpah  to  their  husband,/ 
Jacob."  Young's  dictatorship  in  the  choice  of  wives  was  equally 
absolute.  "  No  man  in  Utah,"  said  the  Seer  (Vol.  I,  p.  31),  "who 
already  has  a  wife,  and  who  may  desire  to  obtain  another,  has  any 
right  to  make  any  proposition  of  marriage  to  a  lady  until  he  has 
consulted  the  President  of  the  whole  church,  and  through  him 
obtained  a  revelation  from  God  as  to  whether  it  would  be  pleasing 
in  His  sight." 

The  authority  of  the  priesthood  was  always  exerted  to  compel 
at  least  every  prominent  member  of  the  church  to  take  more  wives 
than  one.  "  For  a  man  to  be  confined  to  one  woman  is  a  small 
business,"  said  Kimball  in  the  Tabernacle,  on  April  4,  1857.  This 
influence  coerced  Stenhouse  to  take  as  his  second  wife  a  fourteen- 
year-old  daughter  of  Parley  P.  Pratt,  although  he  loved  his  legal 
wife,  and  she  had  told  him  that  she  would  not  live  with  him  if  he 
married  again,  and  although  his  intimate  friend,  Superintendent 
Cooke,  of  the  Overland  Stage  Company,  to  save  him,  threatened 
to  prosecute  him  under  the  law  against  bigamy  if  he  yielded.1 
Another  illustration,  given  by  Mrs.  Waite,  may  be  cited.  Kim- 
ball, calling  on  a  Prussian  immigrant  named  Taussig  one  day, 
asked  him  how  he  was  doing  and  how  many  wives  he  had,  and  on 
being  told  that  he  had  two,  replied,  "That  is  not  enough.  You 
must  take  a  couple  more.  I'll  send  them  to  you."  The  narrative 
continues :  — 

"  On  the  following  evening,  when  the  brother  returned  home,  he  found  two 
women  sitting  there.  His  first  wife  said,  'Brother  Taussig'  (all  the  women  call 
their  husbands  brother),  '  these  are  the  Sisters  Pratt.'  They  were  two  widows  ot 
Parley  P.  Pratt.  One  of  the  ladies,  Sarah,  then  said,  ' Brother  Taussig,  Brother 
Kimball  told  us  to  call  on  you,  and  you  know  what  for.'  <  Yes,  ladies,'  replied 
Brother  Taussig,  'but  it  is  a  very  hard  task  for  me  to  marry  two.'  The  other 
remarked,  '  Brother  Kimball  told  us  you  were  doing  a  very  good  business  and 
could  support  more  women.'  Sarah  then  took  up  the  conversation,  'Well, 
Brother  Taussig,  I  want  to  get  married  anyhow.'  The  good  brother  replied, 
'  Well,  ladies,  I  will  see  what  I  can  do  and  let  you  know. ' "  2 

Brother  Taussig  compromised  the  matter  with  the  Bishop  ot 
his  ward  by  marrying  Sarah,  but  she  did  not  like  her  new  home, 

1  When  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Stenhouse  left  the  church  at  the  time  of  the  "  New  Move- 
ment," their  daughter,  who  was  a  polygamous  wife  of  Brigham  Young's  son,  decided 
with  the  church  and  refused  even  to  speak  with  her  parents. 

2  "The  Mormon  Prophet,"  p.  258. 


5§3  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

and  he  was  allowed  to  divorce  her  on  payment  of  $10  to  Brigham 
Young ! 

Each  polygamous  family  was,  of  course,  governed  in  accord- 
ance with  the  character  of  its  head :  a  kind  man  would  treat  all 
his  wives  kindly,  however  decided  a  preference  he  might  show  for 
one  ;  and  under  a  brute  all  would  be  unhappy.  Young,  in  his  ear- 
lier days  at  Salt  Lake  City,  used  to  assemble  all  his  family  for 
prayers,  and  have  a  kind  word  for  each  of  the  women,  and  all  ate 
at  a  common  table  after  his  permanent  residences  were  built. 
"Brigham's  wives,"  says  Hyde,  "although  poorly  clothed  and 
hard  worked,  are  still  very  infatuated  with  their  system,  very 
devout  in  their  religion,  very  devoted  to  their  children.  They  con- 
tent themselves  with  his  kindness  as  they  cannot  obtain  his  love."  1 
He  kept  no  servants,  the  wives  performing  all  the  household  work, 
and  one  of  them  acting  as  teacher  to  her  own  and  the  others'  chil- 
dren. As  the  excuse  for  marriage  with  the  Mormons  is  childbear- 
ing,2  the  older  wives  were  practically  discarded,  taking  the  place  of 
examples  of  piety  and  of  spiritual  advisers. 

A  summing  up  of  the  many-sided  evils  of  polygamy  was  thus 
presented  by  President  Cleveland  in  his  first  annual  message :  — 

"  The  strength,  the  perpetuity,  and  the  destiny  of  the  nation  rests  upon  our 
homes,  established  by  the  law  of  God,  guarded  by  parental  care,  regulated  by 
parental  authority,  and  sanctified  by  parental  love.  These  are  not  the  homes  of 
polygamy. 

"The  mothers  of  our  land,  who  rule  the  nation  as  they  mould  the  characters 
and  guide  the  actions  of  their  sons,  live  according  to  God's  holy  ordinances,  and 
each,  secure  and  happy  in  the  exclusive  love  of  the  father  of  her  children,  sheds 
the  warm  light  of  true  womanhood,  unperverted  and  unpolluted,  upon  all  within 

1  "  Mormonism,"  p.  164. 

2  How  far  this  doctrine  was  not  observed  may  be  noted  in  the  following  remarks  of 
H.  C.  Kimball  in  the  Tabernacle,  on  February  1,  1857:  "They  [his  wives]  have  got  to 
live  their  religion,  serve  their  God,  and  do  right  as  well  as  myself.  Suppose  that  I  lose 
the  whole  of  them  before  I  go  into  the  spiritual  world,  but  that  I  have  been  a  good, 
faithful  man  all  the  days  of  my  life,  and  lived  my  religion,  and  had  favor  with  God,  and 
was  kind  to  them,  do  you  think  I  will  be  destitute  there  ?  No.  The  Lord  says  there 
are  more  there  than  there  are  here.  They  have  been  increasing  there;  they  increase 
there  a  great  deal  faster  than  they  do  here,  because  there  is  no  obstruction.  They  do  not 
call  upon  the  doctors  to  kill  their  offspring.  In  this  world  very  many  of  the  doctors  are 
studying  to  diminish  the  human  race.  In  the  spiritual  world  ...  we  will  go  to  Brother 
Joseph  .  .  .  and  he  will  say  to  us,  '  Come  along,  my  boys,  we  will  give  you  a  good  suit 
of  clothes.  Where  are  your  wives?'  'They  are  back  yonder;  they  would  not  follow  us.' 
'  Never  mind,'  says  Joseph,  '  here  are  thousands;  have  all  you  want.'  "  — Journal  of  Dis- 
courses, Vol.  IV,  p.  209. 


SOCIAL   ASPECTS   OF   POLYGAMY  589 

her  pure  and  wholesome  family  circle.     These  are  not  the  cheerless,  crushed,  and 
unwomanly  mothers  of  polygamy. 

"  The  fathers  of  our  families  are  the  best  citizens  of  the  Republic.  Wife 
and  children  are  the  sources  of  patriotism,  and  conjugal  and  parental  affection 
beget  devotion  to  the  country.  The  man  who,  undefiled  with  plural  marriage,  is 
surrounded  in  his  single  home  with  his  wife  and  children,  has  a  status  in  the  coun- 
try which  inspires  him  with  respect  for  its  laws  and  courage  for  its  defence. 
These  are  not  the  fathers  of  polygamous  families." 


CHAPTER    XXIV 
THE   FIGHT   AGAINST   POLYGAMY  — STATEHOOD 

The  first  measure  "  to  punish  and  prevent  the  practice  of  polyg- 
amy in  the  Territories  of  the  United  States "  was  introduced  in 
the  House  of  Representatives  by  Mr.  Morrill  of  Vermont  (Bill 
No.  7)  at  the  first  session  of  the  36th  Congress,  on  February  15, 
i860.  It  contained  clauses  annulling  some  of  the  acts  of  the  ter- 
ritorial legislature  of  Utah,  including  the  one  incorporating  the 
Church  of  Jesus  Christ  of  Latter-Day  Saints.  This  bill  was 
reported  by  the  Judiciary  Committee  on  March  14,  the  committee 
declaring  that  "  no  argument  was  deemed  necessary  to  prove  that 
an  act  could  be  regarded  as  criminal  which  is  so  treated  by  the 
universal  concurrence  of  the  Christian  and  civilized  world,"  and 
characterizing  the  church  incorporation  act  as  granting  "  such 
monstrous  powers  and  arrogant  assumptions  as  are  at  war  with 
the  genius  of  our  government."  The  bill  passed  the  House  on 
April  5,  by  a  vote  of  149  to  60,  was  favorably  reported  to  the 
Senate  by  Mr.  Bayard  from  the  Judiciary  Committee  on  June  13, 
but  did  not  pass  that  House. 

Mr.  Morrill  introduced  his  bill  by  unanimous  consent  in  the 
next  Congress  (on  April  8,  1862),  and  it  was  passed  by  the  House 
on  April  28.  Mr.  Bayard,  from  the  Judiciary  Committee,  reported 
it  back  to  the  Senate  on  June  3  with  amendments.  He  explained 
that  the  House  Bill  punished  not  only  polygamous  marriages,  but 
cohabitation  without  marriage.  The  committee  recommended  lim- 
iting the  punishment  to  bigamy  —  a  fine  not  to  exceed  $500  and 
imprisonment  for  not  more  than  five  years.  Another  amendment 
limited  the  amount  of  real  estate  which  a  church  corporation  could 
hold  in  the  territories  to  $50,000.  The  bill  passed  the  Senate 
with  the  negative  votes  of  only  the  two  California  senators,  and 
the  House  accepted  the  amendments.     Lincoln  signed  it. 

590 


THE   FIGHT  AGAINST   POLYGAMY  —  STATEHOOD  591 

Nothing  practical  was  accomplished  by  this  legislation.  In 
1867  George  A.  Smith  and  John  Taylor,  the  presiding  officers  of 
the  Utah  legislature,  petitioned  Congress  to  repeal  this  act,  set- 
ting forth  as  one  reason  that  "the  judiciary  of  this  territory  has 
not,  up  to  the  present  time,  tried  any  case  under  said  law,  though 
repeatedly  urged  to  do  so  by  those  who  have  been  anxious  to  test 
its  constitutionality."  The  House  Judiciary  Committee  reported 
that  this  was  a  practical  request  for  the  sanctioning  of  polygamy, 
and  said :  "  Your  committee  has  not  been  able  to  ascertain  the 
reason  why  this  law  has  not  been  enforced.  The  humiliating  fact 
is,  however,  apparent  that  the  law  is  at  present  practically  a  dead 
letter  in  the  Territory  of  Utah,  and  that  the  gravest  necessity 
exists  for  its  enforcement ;  and,  in  the  opinion  of  the  committee, 
if  it  be  through  the  fault  or  neglect  of  the  judiciary  of  that  terri- 
tory that  the  laws  are  not  enforced,  the  judges  should  be  removed 
without  delay ;  and  that,  if  the  failure  to  execute  the  law  arises 
from  other  causes,  it  becomes  the  duty  of  the  President  of  the 
United  States  to  see  that  the  law  is  faithfully  executed."  * 

In  June,  1866,  Senator  Benjamin  Wade  of  Ohio  obtained  unani- 
mous consent  to  introduce  a  bill  enacting  radical  legislation  con- 
cerning such  marriages  as  were  performed  and  sanctioned  by  the 
Mormon  church,  but  it  did  not  pass.  Senator  Cragin  of  New 
Hampshire  soon  introduced  a  similar  bill,  but  it,  too,  failed  to 
become  a  law. 

In  1869,  in  the  first  Congress  that  met  under  President  Grant, 
Mr.  Cullom  of  Illinois  introduced  in  the  House  the  bill  aimed  at 
polygamy  that  was  designated  by  his  name.  This  bill  was  the 
practical  starting-point  of  the  anti-polygamous  legislation  subse- 
quently enacted,  as  over  it  was  aroused  the  feeling  —  in  its  behalf 
in  the  East  and  against  it  in  Utah  —  that  resulted  in  practical 
legislation. 

Delegate  Hooper  made  the  leading  speech  against  it,  summing 
up  his  objections  as  follows  :  — 

"  (1)  That  under  our  constitution  we  are  entitled  to  be  protected  in  the  full 
and  free  enjoyment  of  eur  religious  faith. 

"  (2)  That  our  views  of  the  marriage  relation  are  an  essential  portion  of  our 
religious  faith. 

"  (3)  That,  in  conceding  the  cognizance  of  the  marriage  relation  as  within 

1  House  Report  No.  27,  2d  Session,  39th  Congress. 


V 


592 


THE   STORY   OF  THE   MORMONS 


the  province  of  church  regulations,  we  are  practically  in  accord  with  all  other 
Christian  denominations. 

"  (4)  That  in  our  view  of  the  marriage  relation  as  a  part  of  our  religious 
belief  we  are  entitled  to  immunity  from  persecution  under  the  constitution,  if  such 
views  are  sincerely  held ;  that,  if  such  views  are  erroneous,  their  eradication  must 
be  by  argument  and  not  by  force." 

The  bill,  greatly  amended,  passed  the  House  on  March  23, 
1870,  by  a  vote  of  94  to  32.  The  news  of  this  action  caused 
perhaps  the  greatest  excitement  ever  known  in  Utah.  There 
was  no  intention  on  the  part  of  the  Mormons  to  make  any  com- 
promise on  the  question,  and  they  set  out  to  defeat  the  bill  out- 
right in  the  Senate.  Meetings  of  Mormon  women  were  gotten  up 
in  all  parts  of  the  territory,  in  which  they  asserted  their  devotion 
to  the  doctrine.  The  "  Reformers,"  including  Stenhouse,  Harri- 
son, Tullidge,  and  others,  and  merchants  like  Walker  Brothers, 
Colonel  Kahn,  and  T.  Marshall,  joined  in  a  call  for  a  mass-meeting 
at  which  all  expressed  disapproval  of  some  of  its  provisions,  like 
the  one  requiring  men  already  having  polygamous  wives  to  break 
up  their  families.  Mr.  Godbe  went  to  Washington  while  the  bill 
was  before  the  House,  and  worked  hard  for  its  modification.  The 
bill  did  not  pass  the  Senate,  a  leading  argument  against  it  being 
the  assumed  impossibility  of  convicting  polygamists  under  it  with 
any  juries  drawn  in  Utah. 

The  arrest  of  Brigham  Young  and  others  under  the  act  to  pun- 
ish adulterers,  and  the  proceedings  against  them  before  Judge 
McKean  in  1871,  have  been  noted.  At  the  same  term  of  the 
court  Thomas  Hawkins,  an  English  immigrant,  was  convicted  of 
the  same  charge  on  the  evidence  of  his  wife,  and  sentenced  to 
imprisonment  for  three  years  and  to  pay  a  fine  of  $500.  In  pass- 
ing sentence,  Judge  McKean  told  the  prisoner  that,  if  he  let  him 
off  with  a  fine,  the  fine  would  be  paid  out  of  other  funds  than  his 
own ;  that  he  would  thus  go  free,  and  that  "  those  men  who  mis- 
lead the  people  would  make  you  and  thousands  of  others  believe 
that  God  had  sent  the  money  to  pay  the  fine ;  that,  by  a  miracle, 
you  had  been  rescued  from  the  authorities  of  the  United  States." 

After  the  passage  of  the  Poland  law,  in  1874,  George  Rey- 
nolds, Brigham  Young's  private  secretary,  was  convicted  of  bigamy 
under  the  law  of  1862,  but  was  set  free  by  the  Supreme  Court  of 
the  territory  on  the  ground  of  illegality  in  the  drawing  of  the  grand 


THE   FIGHT   AGAINST   POLYGAMY  — STATEHOOD  593 

jury.  In  the  following  year  he  was  again  convicted,  and  was  sen- 
tenced to  imprisonment  for  two  years  and  to  pay  a  fine  of  $500. 
The  case  was  appealed  to  the  United  States  Supreme  Court,  which 
rendered  its  decision  in  October,  1878,  unanimously  sustaining  the 
conviction,  except  that  Justice  Field  objected  to  the  admission  of 
one  witness's  testimony. 

In  its  decision  the  court  stated  the  question  raised  to  be 
"  whether  religious  belief  can  be  accepted  as  a  justification  for 
an  overt  act  made  criminal  by  the  law  of  the  land."  Next  came  a 
discussion  of  views  of  religious  freedom,  as  bearing  on  the  meaning 
of  "  religion  "  in  the  federal  constitution,  leading  up  to  the  conclu- 
sion that  "  Congress  was  deprived  of  all  legislative  power  over  mere 
opinion,  but  was  left  free  to  reach  actions  which  were  in  violation 
of  social  duties,  or  subversive  of  good  order."  The  court  then 
traced  the  view  of  polygamy  in  England  and  the  United  States 
from  the  time  when  it  was  made  a  capital  offence  in  England  (as 
it  was  in  Virginia  in  1788),  declaring  that,  "in  the  face  of  all  this 
evidence,  it  is  impossible  to  believe  that  the  constitutional  guaranty 
of  religious  freedom  was  intended  to  prohibit  legislation  in  respect 
to  this  most  important  feature  of  social  life."  The  opinion  con- 
tinued as  follows :  — 

"In  our  opinion,  the  statute  immediately  under  consideration  is  within  the 
legislative  power  of  Congress.  It  is  constitutional  and  valid  as  prescribing  a  rule 
of  action  for  all  those  residing  in  the  Territories,  and  in  places  over  which  the 
United  States  has  exclusive  control.  This  being  so,  the  only  question  which 
remains  is,  whether  those  who  make  polygamy  a  part  of  their  religion  are  excepted 
from  the  operation  of  the  statute.  If  they  are,  then  those  who  do  not  make  po- 
lygamy a  part  of  their  religious  belief  may  be  found  guilty  and  punished,  while 
those  who  do,  must  be  acquitted  and  go  free.  This  would  be  introducing  a  new 
element  into  criminal  law.  Laws  are  made  for  the  government  of  actions,  and, 
while  they  cannot  interfere  with  mere  religious  belief  and  opinions,  they  may  with 
practices.  Suppose  one  believed  that  human  sacrifices  were  a  necessary  part  of 
religious  worship,  would  it  be  seriously  contended  that  the  civil  government  under 
which  he  lived  could  not  interfere  to  prevent  a  sacrifice  ?  Or,  if  a  wife  religiously 
believed  it  was  her  duty  to  burn  herself  on  the  funeral  pile  of  her  dead  husband, 
would  it  be  beyond  the  power  of  the  civil  government  to  prevent  her  carrying  her 
belief  into  practice  ? 

"  So  here,  as  a  law  of  the  organization  of  society  under  the  exclusive  dominion 
of  the  United  States,  it  is  provided  that  plural  marriages  shall  not  be  allowed. 
Can  a  man  excuse  his  practices  to  the  contrary  because  of  his  religious  belief  ? 
To  permit  this  would  be  to  make  the  professed  doctrines  of  religious  belief  supe- 

2Q 


594  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

rior  to  the  law  of  the  land,  and  in  effect  to  permit  every  citizen  to  become  a  law 
unto  himself.     Government  could  exist  only  in  name  under  such  circumstances. 

"  A  criminal  intent  is  generally  an  element  of  crime,  but  every  man  is  pre- 
sumed to  intend  the  necessary  and  legitimate  consequences  of  what  he  knowingly 
does.  Here  the  accused  knew  he  had  been  once  married,  and  that  his  first  wife 
was  living.  He  also  knew  that  his  second  marriage  was  forbidden  by  law.  When, 
therefore,  he  married  the  second  time,  he  is  presumed  to  have  intended  to  break 
the  law,  and  the  breaking  of  the  law  is  the  crime.  Every  act  necessary  to  con- 
stitute the  crime  was  knowingly  done,  and  the  crime  was  therefore  knowingly 
committed.1 

P.  T.  Van  Zile  of  Michigan,  who  became  district  attorney  of 
the  territory  in  1878,  tried  John  Miles,  a  polygamist,  for  bigamy, 
in  1879,  and  he  was  convicted,  the  prosecutor  taking  advantage  of 
the  fact  that  the  territorial  legislature  had  practically  adopted  the 
California  code,  which  allowed  challenges  of  jurors  for  actual  bias. 
The  principal  incident  of  this  trial  was  the  summoning  of  "  Gen- 
eral" Wells,  then  a  counsellor  of  the  church,  as  a  witness,  and  his 
refusal  to  describe  the  dress  worn  during  the  ceremonies  in  the 
Endowment  House,  and  the  ceremonies  themselves.  He  gave  as 
his  excuse,  "  because  I  am  under  moral  and  sacred  obligations  to 
not  answer,  and  it  is  interwoven  in  my  character  never  to  betray  a 
friend,  a  brother,  my  country,  my  God,  or  my  religion."  He  was 
sentenced  to  pay  a  fine  of  $100,  and  to  two  days'  imprisonment. 
On  his  release,  the  City  Council  met  him  at  the  prison  door  and 
escorted  him  home,  accompanied  by  bands  of  music  and  a  proces- 
sion made  up  of  the  benevolent,  fire,  and  other  organizations,  and 
delegations  from  every  ward. 

Governor  Emery,  in  his  message  to  the  territorial  legislature 
of  1878,  spoke  as  plainly  about  polygamy  as  any  of  his  predeces- 
sors, saying  that  it  was  a  grave  crime,  even  if  the  law  against  it 
was  a  dead  letter,  and  characterizing  it  as  an  evil  endangering  the 
peace  of  society. 

There  was  a  lull  in  the  agitation  against  polygamy  in  Congress 
for  some  years  after  the  contest  over  the  Cullom  Bill.  In  1878  a 
mass-meeting  of  women  of  Salt  Lake  City  opposed  to  polygamy 
was  held  there,  and  an  address  ''to  Mrs.  Rutherford  B.  Hayes  and 
the  women  of  the  United  States,"  and  a  petition  to  Congress,  were 
adopted,  and  a  committee  was  appointed  to  distribute  the  petition 
throughout  the  country  for  signatures.    The  address  set  forth  that 

1  United  States  Reports,  Otto,  Vol.  Ill,  p.  162. 


THE   FIGHT   AGAINST   POLYGAMY  — STATEHOOD  595 

there  had  been  more  polygamous  marriages  in  the  last  year  than 
ever  before  in  the  history  of  the  Mormon  church  ;  that  Endowment 
Houses,  under  the  name  of  temples,  and  costing  millions,  were  being 
erected  in  different  parts  of  the  territory,  in  which  the  members 
were  "  sealed  and  bound  by  oaths  so  strong  that  even  apostates  will 
not  reveal  them"  ;  that  the  Mormons  had  the  balance  of  power  in 
two  territories,  and  were  plotting  to  extend  it ;  and  asking  Congress 
"to  arrest  the  further  progress  of  this  evil." 

President  Hayes,  in  his  annual  message  in  December,  1879, 
spoke  of  the  recent  decision  of  the  United  States  Supreme  Court, 
and  said  that  there  was  no  reason  for  longer  delay  in  the  enforce- 
ment of  the  law,  urging  "  more  comprehensive  and  searching 
methods  "  of  punishing  and  preventing  polygamy  if  they  were  nec- 
essary. He  returned  to  the  subject  in  his  message  in  1880,  say- 
ing :  "  Polygamy  can  only  be  suppressed  by  taking  away  the 
political  power  of  the  sect  which  encourages  and  sustains  it.  .  .  . 
I  recommend  that  Congress  provide  for  the  government  of  Utah 
by  a  Governor  and  Judges,  or  Commissioners,  appointed  by  the 
President  and  confirmed  by  the  Senate,  (or)  that  the  right  to  vote, 
hold  office,  or  sit  on  juries  in  the  Territory  of  Utah  be  confined  to 
those  who  neither  practise  nor  uphold  polygamy." 

President  Garfield  took  up  the  subject  in  his  inaugural  address  on 
March  4,  1881.  "  The  Mormon  church,"  he  said,  "  not  only  offends 
the  moral  sense  of  mankind  by  sanctioning  polygamy,  but  prevents 
the  administration  of  justice  through  ordinary  instrumentalities  of 
law."  He  expressed  the  opinion  that  Congress  should  prohibit 
polygamy,  and  not  allow  "  any  ecclesiastical  organization  to  usurp 
in  the  smallest  degree  the  functions  and  power  of  the  national  gov- 
ernment." President  Arthur,  in  his  message  in  December,  1881, 
referred  to  the  difficulty  of  securing  convictions  of  persons  accused 
of  polygamy  —  "this  odious  crime,  so  revolting  to  the  moral  and 
religious  sense  of  Christendom  "  —  and  recommended  legislation. 

In  the  spirit  of  these  recommendations,  Senator  Edmunds 
introduced  in  the  Senate,  on  December  12,  1881,  a  comprehensive 
measure  amending  the  anti-polygamy  law  of  1862,  which,  amended 
during  the  course  of  the  debate,  was  passed  in  the  Senate  on  Feb- 
ruary 12,  1882,  without  a  roll-call,1  and  in  the  House  on  March  13, 

1  Speeches  against  the  bill  were  made  in  the  Senate  by  Brown,  Call,  Lamar,  Mor- 
gan, Pendleton,  and  Vest. 


596  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

by  a  vote  of  199  to  42,  and  was  approved  by  the  President  on 
March  22.  This  is  what  is  known  as  the  Edmunds  law  —  the 
first  really  serious  blow  struck  by  Congress  against  polygamy. 

It  provided,  in  brief,  that,  in  the  territories,  any  person  who, 
having  a  husband  or  wife  living,  marries  another,  or  marries  more 
than  one  woman  on  the  same  day,  shall  be  punished  by  a  fine  of 
not  more  than  $500,  and  by  imprisonment,  for  not  more  than  five 
years  ;  that  a  male  person  cohabiting  with  more  than  one  woman 
shall  be  guilty  of  a  misdemeanor,  and  be  subject  to  a  fine  of  not 
more  than  $300  or  to  six  months'  imprisonment,  or  both ;  that  in 
any  prosecution  for  bigamy,  polygamy,  or  unlawful  cohabitation, 
a  juror  may  be  challenged  if  he  is  or  has  been  living  in  the  prac- 
tice of  either  offence,  or  if  he  believes  it  right  for  a  man  to  have 
more  than  one  living  and  undivorced  wife  at  a  time,  or  to  cohabit 
with  more  than  one  woman  ;  that  the  President  may  have  power 
to  grant  amnesty  to  offenders,  as  described,  before  the  passage  of 
this  act ;  that  the  issue  of  so-called  Mormon  marriages  born  before 
January  1,  1883,  be  legitimated;  that  no  polygamist  shall  be  enti- 
tled to  vote  in  any  territory,  or  to  hold  office  under  the  United  States  ; 
that  the  President  shall  appoint  in  Utah  a  board  of  five  persons 
for  the  registry  of  voters,  and  the  reception  and  counting  of  votes. 

To  meet  the  determined  opposition  to  the  new  law,  an  amend- 
ment (known  as  the  Edmunds-Tucker  law)  was  enacted  in  1887. 
This  law,  in  any  prosecution  coming  under  the  definition  of  plural 
marriages,  waived  the  process  of  subpoena,  on  affadavit  of  suffi- 
cient cause,  in  favor  of  an  attachment ;  allowed  a  lawful  husband 
or  wife  to  testify  regarding  each  other ;  required  every  marriage 
certificate  in  Utah  to  be  signed  by  the  parties  and  the  person 
performing  the  ceremony,  and  filed  in  court ;  abolished  female 
suffrage,  and  gave  suffrage  only  to  males  of  proper  age  who  regis- 
tered and  took  an  oath,  giving  the  names  of  their  lawful  wives, 
and  promised  to  obey  the  laws  of  the  United  States,  and  especially 
the  Edmunds  law ;  disqualified  as  a  juror  or  office-holder  any 
person  who  had  not  taken  an  oath  to  support  the  laws  of  the 
United  States,  or  who  had  been  convicted  under  the  Edmunds 
law;  gave  the  President  power  to  appoint  the  judges  of  the  pro- 
bate courts  ; 1  provided  for  escheating  to  the  United  States  for  the 

1  The  first  territorial  legislature  which  met  after  the  passage  of  this  law  passed  an 
act  practically  nullifying  such  appointments  of  probate  judges,  but  the  governor  vetoed 


THE   FIGHT  AGAINST   POLYGAMY  — STATEHOOD         597 

use  of  the  common  schools  the  property  of  corporations  held  in 
violation  of  the  act  in  1862,  except  buildings  held  exclusively  for 
the  worship  of  God,  the  parsonages  connected  therewith,  and 
burial  places ;  dissolved  the  corporation  called  the  Perpetual  Emi- 
gration Company,  and  forbade  the  legislature  to  pass  any  law  to 
bring  persons  into  the  territory ;  dissolved  the  corporation  known 
as  the  Church  of  Jesus  Christ  of  Latter-Day  Saints,  and  gave  the 
Supreme  Court  of  the  territory  power  to  wind  up  its  affairs ;  and 
annulled  all  laws  regarding  the  Nauvoo  Legion,  and  all  acts  of  the 
territorial  legislature. 

The  first  members  of  the  Utah  commission  appointed  under 
the  Edmunds  law  were  Alexander  Ramsey  of  Minnesota,  A.  B. 
Carleton  of  Indiana,  A.  S.  Paddock  of  Nebraska,  G.  L.  Godfrey 
of  Iowa,  and  J.  R.  Pettigrew  of  Arkansas,  their  appointments 
being  dated  June  23,  1882. 

The  officers  of  the  church  and  the  Mormons  as  a  body  met  the 
new  situation  as  aggressively  as  did  Brigham  Young  the  approach 
of  United  States  troops.  Their  preachers  and  their  newspapers 
reiterated  the  divine  nature  of  the  "  revelation"  concerning  polyg- 
amy and  its  obligatory  character,  urging  the  people  to  stand  by 
their  leaders  in  opposition  to  the  new  laws.  The  following  extracts 
from  "  an  Epistle  from  the  First  Presidency,  to  the  officers  and 
members  of  the  church,"  dated  October  6,  1885,  will  sufficiently 
illustrate  the  attitude  of  the  church  organization :  — 

"The  war  is  openly  and  undisguisedly  made  upon  our  religion.  To  induce 
men  to  repudiate  that,  to  violate  its  precepts,  and  break  its  solemn  covenants, 
every  encouragement  is  given.  The  man  who  agrees  to  discard  his  wife  or 
wives,  and  to  trample  upon  the  most  sacred  obligations  which  human  beings  can 
enter  into,  escapes  imprisonment,  and  is  applauded :  while  the  man  who  will 
not  make  this  compact  of  dishonor,  who  will  not  admit  that  his  past  life  has 
been  a  fraud  and  a  lie,  who  will  not  say  to  the  world,  '  I  intended  to  deceive 
my  God,  my  brethren,  and  my  wives  by  making  covenants  I  did  not  expect  to 
keep,1  is,  beside  being  punished  to  the  full  extent  of  the  law,  compelled  to  endure 
the  reproaches,  taunts,  and  insults  of  a  brutal  judge.  .  .  . 

"  We  did  not  reveal  celestial  marriage.  We  cannot  withdraw  or  renounce  it. 
God  revealed  it,  and  he  has  promised  to  maintain  it  and  to  bless  those  who  obey 
it.  Whatever  fate,  then,  may  threaten  us,  there  is  but  one  course  for  men  of 
God  to  take ;  that  is,  to  keep  inviolate  the  holy  covenants  they  have  made  in  the 

it.  In  Beaver  County,  as  soon  as  the  appointment  of  a  probate  judge  by  the  President 
was  announced,  the  Mormon  County  Court  met  and  reduced  his  salary  to  $5  a  year. 


598  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

presence  of  God  and  angels.  For  the  remainder,  whether  it  be  life  or  death, 
freedom  or  imprisonment,  prosperity  or  adversity,  we  must  trust  in  God.  We 
may  say,  however,  if  any  man  or  woman  expects  to  enter  into  the  celestial  king- 
dom of  our  God  without  making  sacrifices  and  without  being  tested  to  the  very 
uttermost,  they  have  not  understood  the  Gospel.  .  .•  . 

"  Upward  of  forty  years  ago  the  Lord  revealed  to  his  church  the  principle  of 
celestial  marriage.  The  idea  of  marrying  more  wives  than  one  was  as  naturally 
abhorrent  to  the  leading  men  and  women  of  the  church,  at  that  day,  as  it  could 
be  to  any  people.  They  shrank  with  dread  from  the  bare  thought  of  entering 
into  such  relationship.  But  the  command  of  God  was  before  them  in  language 
which  no  faithful  soul  dare  disobey,  '  For,  behold,  I  reveal  unto  you  a  new  and 
everlasting  covenant ;  and  if  ye  abide  not  that  covenant,  then  are  ye  damned ; 
for  no  one  can  reject  this  covenant,  and  be  permitted  to  enter  into  my  glory.'  .  .  . 
Who  would  suppose  that  any  man,  in  this  land  of  religious  liberty,  would  presume 
to  say  to  his  fellow-man  that  he  had  no  right  to  take  such  steps  as  he  thought 
necessary  to  escape  damnation?  Or  that  Congress  would  enact  a  law  which 
would  present  the  alternative  to  religious  believers  of  being  consigned  to  a  peni- 
tentiary if  they  should  attempt  to  obey  a  law  of  God  which  would  deliver  them 
from  damnation  ? " 

There  was  a  characteristic  effort  to  evade  the  law  as  regards 
political  rights.  The  People's  Party  (Mormon),  to  get  around  the 
provision  concerning  the  test  oath  for  voters,  issued  an  address  to 
them  which  said :  "  The  questions  that  intending  voters  need 
therefore  ask  themselves  are  these :  Are  we  guilty  of  the  crimes 
of  said  act ;  or  have  we  the  present  intention  of  committing  these 
crimes,  or  of  aiding,  abetting,  causing  or  advising  any  other 
person  to  commit  them.  Male  citizens  who  can  answer  these 
questions  in  the  negative  can  qualify  under  the  laws  as  voters  or 
office-holders." 

Two  events  in  1885  were  the  cause  of  so  much  feeling  that 
United  States  troops  were  held  in  readiness  for  transportation  to 
Utah.  The  first  of  these  was  the  placing  of  the  United  States 
flag  at  half  mast  in  Salt  Lake  City,  on  July  4,  over  the  city  hall, 
county  court-house,  theatre,  cooperative  store,  Descrct  News  office, 
tithing  office,  and  President  Taylor's  residence,  to  show  the  Mormon 
opinion  that  the  Edmunds  law  had  destroyed  liberty.  When  a 
committee  of  non-Mormon  citizens  called  at  the  city  hall  for  an 
explanation  of  this  display,  the  city  marshal  said  that  it  was  "  a 
whim  of  his,"  and  the  mayor  ordered  the  flag  raised  to  its  proper 
place. 

In  November  of  that  year  a  Mormon  night  watchman  named 


THE   FIGHT   AGAINST   POLYGAMY— STATEHOOD         599 

McMurrin  was  shot  and  severely  wounded  by  a  United  States 
deputy  marshal  named  Collin.  This  caused  great  feeling,  and 
there  were  rumors  that  the  Mormons  threatened  to  lynch  Collin, 
that  armed  men  had  assembled  to  take  him  out  of  the  officers' 
hands,  and  that  the  Mormons  of  the  territory  were  arming  them- 
selves, and  were  ready  at  a  moment's  notice  to  march  into  Salt 
Lake  City.  Federal  troops  were  held  in  readiness  at  Eastern 
points,  but  they  were  not  used.  The  Salt  Lake  City  Council,  on 
December  8,  made  a  report  denying  the  truth  of  the  disquieting 
rumors,  and  declaring  that  "  at  no  time  in  the  history  of  this  city 
have  the  lives  and  property  of  its  non-Mormon  inhabitants  been 
more  secure  than  now." 

The  records  of  the  courts  in  Utah  show  that  the  Mormons 
stood  ready  to  obey  the  teachings  of  the  church  at  any  cost. 
Prosecutions  under  the  Edmunds  law  began  in  1884,  and  the 
convictions  for  polygamy  or  unlawful  cohabitation  (mostly  the 
latter) were  as  follows  in  the  years  named:  3  in  1884,  39  in  1885, 
112  in  1886,  214  in  1887,  and  100  in  1888,  with  48  in  Idaho  during 
the  same  period.  Leading  men  in  the  church  went  into  hiding  — 
"under  ground,"  as  it  was  called —  or  fled  from  the  territory.  As 
to  the  actual  continuance  of  polygamous  marriages,  the  evidence 
was  contradictory.  A  special  report  of  the  Utah  Commission  in 
1884  expressed  the  opinion  that  there  had  been  a  decided  decrease 
in  their  number  in  the  cities,  and  very  little  decrease  in  the  rural 
districts.  Their  regular  report  for  that  year  estimated  the  number 
of  males  and  females  who  had  entered  into  that  relation  at  459. 
The  report  for  1888  stated  that  the  registration  officers  gave  the 
names  of  29  females  who,  they  had  good  reason  to  believe,  had 
contracted  polygamous  marriages  since  the  lists  were  closed  in 
June,  1887.  As  late  as  1889  Hans  Jespersen  was  arrested  for 
unlawful  cohabitation.  As  his  plural  marriage  was  understood  to 
be  a  recent  one,  the  case  attracted  wide  attention,  since  it  was 
expected  to  prove  the  insincerity  of  the  church  in  making  the  pro- 
test against  the  Edmunds  law  principally  on  the  ground  that  it 
broke  up  existing  families.  Jespersen  pleaded  guilty  of  adultery 
and  polygamy,  and  was  sentenced  to  imprisonment  for  eight  years. 
In  making  his  plea  he  said  that  he  was  married  at  the  Endowment 
House  in  Salt  Lake  City,  that  he  and  his  wife  were  the  only  per- 
sons there,  and  that  he  did  not  know  who  married  them.     His  wife 


sf 


600  THE   STORY  OF  THE   MORMONS 

testified  that  she  "  heard  a  voice  pronounce  them  man  and  wife, 
but  didn't  see  any  one  nor  who  spoke."  1  Such  were  some  of  the 
methods  adopted  by  the  church  to  set  at  naught  the  law. 

But  along  with  this  firm  attitude,  influences  were  at  work  look- 
ing to  a  change  of  policy.  During  the  first  year  of  the  enforce- 
ment of  the  law  it  was  on  many  sides  declared  a  failure,  the 
aggressive  attitude  of  the  church,  and  the  willingness  of  its  leaders 
to  accept  imprisonment,  hiding,  or  exile,  being  regarded  by  many 
persons  in  the  East  as  proof  that  the  real  remedy  for  the  Utah 
situation  was  yet  to  be  discovered.  The  Utah  Commission,  in  their 
earlier  reports,  combated  this  idea,  and  pointed  out  that  the  young 
men  in  the  church  would  grow  restive  as  they  saw  all  the  offices 
out  of  their  reach  unless  they  took  the  test  oath,  and  that  they 
"  would  present  an  anomaly  in  human  nature  if  they  should  fail 
to  be  strongly  influenced  against  going  into  a  relation  which  thus 
subjects  them  to  political  ostracism,  and  fixes  on  them  the  stigma 
of  moral  turpitude."  How  wide  this  influence  was  is  seen  in  the 
political  statistics  of  the  times.  When  the  Utah  Commission 
entered  on  their  duties  in  August,  1882,  almost  every  office  in  the 
territory  was  held  by  a  polygamist.  By  April,  1884,  about  12,000 
voters,  male  and  female,  had  been  disfranchised  by  the  act,  and 
of  the  135 1  elective  officers  in  the  territory  not  one  was  a  polyga- 
mist, and  not  one  of  the  municipal  officers  of  Salt  Lake  City  then 
in  office  had  ever  been  "in  polygamy." 

The  church  leaders  at  first  tried  to  meet  this  influence  in  two 
ways,  by  open  rebuke  of  all  Saints  who  showed  a  disposition  to 
obey  the  new  laws,  and  by  special  honors  to  those  who  took  their 
punishment.  Thus,  the  Deseret  News  told  the  brethren  that  they 
could  not  promise  to  obey  the  anti-polygamy  laws  without  violating 
obligations  that  bound  them  to  time  and  eternity ;  and  when  John 
Sharp,  a  leading  member  of  the  church  in  Salt  Lake  City,  went 
before  the  court  and  announced  his  intention  to  obey  these  laws, 
he  was  instantly  removed  from  the  office  of  Bishop  of  his  ward. 

The  restlessness  of  the  flock  showed  itself  in  the  breaking  down 
of  the  business  barriers  set  up  by  the  church  between  Mormons 
and  Gentiles.  This  subject  received  a  good  deal  of  attention  in 
the  minority  report  signed  by  two  of  the  commissioners  in  1888. 
They  noted  the  sale  of  real  estate  by  Mormons  to  Gentiles  against 

1  Report  of  the  Utah  Commission  for  1890,  p.  23. 


THE  FIGHT  AGAINST   POLYGAMY— STATEHOOD         601 

the  remonstrances  of  the  church,  the  organization  of  a  Chamber  of 
Commerce  in  Salt  Lake  City  in  which  Mormons  and  Gentiles 
worked  together,  and  the  union  of  both  elements  in  the  last  Fourth 
of  July  celebration. 

In  the  spring  of  1890,  at  the  General  Conference  held  in  Salt 
Lake  City,  the  office  of  "  Prophet,  Seer  and  Revelator  and  Presi- 
dent" of  the  church,  that  had  remained  vacant  since  the  death  of 
John  Taylor  in  1887,  was  filled  by  the  election  of  Wilford  Wood- 
ruff, a  poly  gam  ist  who  had  refused  to  take  the  test  oath,  while 
G.  Q.  Cannon  and  Lorenzo  Snow,  who  were  disfranchised  for  the 
same  cause,  were  made  respectively  counsellor  and  president  of 
the  Twelve.1  Woodruff  was  born  in  Connecticut  in  1807,  became 
a  Mormon  in  1832,  was  several  times  sent  on  missions  to  England, 
and  had  gained  so  much  prominence  while  the  church  was  at 
Nauvoo  that  he  was  the  chief  dedicator  of  the  Temple  there. 
While  there,  he  signed  a  certificate  stating  that  he  knew  of  no 
other  system  of  marriage  in  the  church  but  the  one-wife  system 
then  prescribed  in  the  "  Book  of  Doctrine  and  Covenants."  Before 
the  date  of  his  promotion,  Woodruff  had  declared  that  plural  mar- 
riages were  no  longer  permitted,  and,  when  he  was  confronted  with 
evidence  to  the  contrary  brought  out  in  court,  he  denied  all  knowl- 
edge of  it,  and  afterward  declared  that,  in  consequence  of  the  evi- 
dence presented,  he  had  ordered  the  Endowment  House  to  be  taken 
down. 

Governor  Thomas,  in  his  report  for  1890,  expressed  the  opinion 
that  the  church,  under  its  system,  could  in  only  one  way  define  its 
position  regarding  polygamy,  and  that  was  by  a  public  declaration 
by  the  head  of  the  church,  or  by  action  by  a  conference,  and 
he  added,  "  There  is  no  reason  to  believe  that  any  earthly  power 
can  extort  from  the  church  any  such  declaration."  The  governor 
was  mistaken,  not  in  measuring  the  purpose  of  the  church,  but  in 
foreseeing  all  the  influences  that  were  now  making  themselves 
felt. 

The  revised  statutes  of  Idaho  at  this  time  contained  a  provi- 
sion (Sec.  509)  disfranchising  all  polygamists  and  debarring  from 
office  all  polygamists,  and  all  persons  who  counselled  or  encour- 

1  Lorenzo  Snow  was  elected  president  of  the  church  on  September  13,  1898,  eleven 
days  after  the  death  of  President  Woodruff,  and  he  held  that  position  until  his  death, 
which  occurred  on  October  10,  1901. 


r 


6o2  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

aged  any  one  to  commit  polygamy.  The  constitutionality  of  this 
section  was  argued  before  the  United  States  Supreme  Court,  which, 
on  February  3,  1890,  decided  that  it  was  constitutional.  The  anti- 
polygamists  in  Utah  saw  in  this  decision  a  means  of  attacking  the 
Mormon  belief  even  more  aggressively  than  had  been  done  by 
means  of  the  Edmunds  Bill.  An  act  was  drawn  (Governor 
Thomas  and  ex-Governor  West  taking  it  to  Washington)  providing 
that  no  person  living  in  plural  or  celestial  marriage,  or  teaching 
the  same,  or  being  a  member  of,  or  a  contributor  to,  any  organiza- 
tion teaching  it,  or  assisting  in  such  a  marriage,  should  be  entitled 
to  vote,  to  serve  as  a  juror,  or  to  hold  office,  a  test  oath  forming  a 
part  of  the  act.  Senator  Cullom  introduced  this  bill  in  the  upper 
House  and  Mr.  Struble  of  Iowa  in  the  House  of  Representatives. 
The  House  Committee  on  Territories  (the  Democrats  in  the  nega- 
tive) voted  to  report  the  bill,  amended  so  as  to  make  it  applicable 
to  all  the  territories.  This  proposed  legislation  caused  great  excite- 
ment in  Mormondom,  and  petitions  against  its  passage  were  hurried 
to  Washington,  some  of  these  containing  non-Mormon  signatures. 

As  a  further  menace  to  the  position  of  the  church,  the  United 
States  Supreme  Court,  on  May  19,  affirmed  the  decision  of  the 
lower  court  confiscating  the  property  of  the  Mormon  church,  and 
declaring  that  church  organization  to  be  an  organized  rebellion  ; 
and  on  June  21,  the  Senate  passed  Senator  Edmunds's  bill  disposing 
of  the  real  estate  of  the  church  for  the  benefit  of  the  school  fund.1 

The  Mormon  authorities  now  realized  that  the  public  sentiment 
of  the  country,  as  expressed  in  the  federal  law,  had  them  in  its 
grasp.  They  must  make  some  concession  to  this  public  sentiment, 
or  surrender  all  their  privileges  as  citizens  and  the  wealth  of  their 
church  organization.  Agents  were  hurried  to  Washington  to  im- 
plore the  aid  of  Mr.  Blaine  in  checking  the  progress  of  the  Cullom 
Bill,  and  at  home  the  head  of  the  church  made  the  concession  in 
regard  to  polygamy  which  secured  the  admission  of  the  territory 
as  a  state. 

On  September  25,  1890,  Woodruff,  as  President  of  the  church, 
issued  a  proclamation  addressed  "  to  whom  it  may  concern,"  which 
struck  out  of  the  necessary  beliefs  and  practices  of  the  Mormon 
church,  the  practice  of  polygamy. 

1  After  the  admission  of  Utah  as  a  state,  Congress  passed  an  act  restoring  the 
property  to  the  church. 


THE   FIGHT   AGAINST   POLYGAMY  —  STATEHOOD         603 

This  important  step  was  taken,  not  in  the  form  of  a  "  revela- 
tion," but  simply  as  a  proclamation  or  manifesto.  It  began  with 
a  solemn  declaration  that  the  allegation  of  the  Utah  Commission  that 
plural  marriages  were  still  being  solemnized  was  false,  and  the 
assertion  that  "  we  are  not  preaching  polygamy,  nor  permitting 
any  person  to  enter  into  its  practice."  The  closing  and  impor- 
tant part  of  the  proclamation  was  as  follows  :  — 

u  Inasmuch  as  laws  have  been  enacted  by  Congress,  which  laws  have  been 
pronounced  constitutional  by  the  court  of  last  resort,  I  hereby  declare  my  inten- 
tion to  submit  to  these  laws,  and  to  use  my  influence  with  the  members  of  the 
church  over  which  I  preside  to  have  them  do  likewise. 

"  There  is  nothing  in  my  teachings  to  the  church,  or  in  those  of  my  associates, 
during  the  time  specified,  which  can  be  reasonably  construed  to  inculcate  or  en- 
courage polygamy,  and  when  any  elder  of  the  church  has  used  language  which 
appeared  to  convey  any  such  teachings  he  has  been  promptly  reproved. 

"And  now  I  publicly  declare  that  my  advice  to  the  Latter-Day  Saints  is  to 
refrain  from  contracting  any  marriage  forbidden  by  the  law  of  the  land." 

On  October  6,  the  General  Conference  of  the  church,  on  motion 
of  Lorenzo  Snow,  unanimously  adopted  the  following  resolution  :  — 

"  I  move  that,  recognizing  Wilford  Woodruff  as  President  of  the  Church  of 
Jesus  Christ  of  Latter-Day  Saints,  and  the  only  man  on  the  earth  at  the  present 
time  who  holds  the  keys  of  the  sealing  ordinances,  we  consider  him  fully  authorized, 
by  virtue  of  his  position,  to  issue  the  manifesto  that  has  been  read  in  our  hearing, 
and  which  is  dated  September  24,  1890,  and  as  a  church  in  general  conference 
assembled  we  accept  his  declaration  concerning  plural  marriages  as  authoritative 
and  binding." 

This  action  was  reaffirmed  by  the  General  Conference  of  Octo- 
ber 6,  1891. 

Of  course  the  church  officers  had  to  make  some  explanation  to 
the  brethren  of  their  change  of  front.  Cannon  fell  back  on  the 
"revelation"  of  January  19,  1841,  which  Smith  put  forth  to  excuse 
the  failure  to  establish  a  Zion  in  Missouri,  namely,  that,  when 
their  enemies  prevent  their  performing  a  task  assigned  by  the 
Almighty,  he  would  accept  their  effort  to  do  so.  He  said  that 
"it  was  on  this  basis  "  that  President  Woodruff  had  felt  justified  in 
issuing  the  manifesto.  Woodruff  explained  :  "  It  is  not  wisdom  for 
us  to  make  war  upon  65,000,000  people.  .  .  .  The  prophet  [Joseph 
Smith]  organized  the  church  ;  and  all  that  he  has  promised  in  this 
code  of  revelations  [the "Book  of  Doctrine  and  Covenants"]  has 


604  THE   STORY   OF  THE  MORMONS 

been  fulfilled  as  fast  as  time  would  permit.  That  which  is  not  ful- 
filled will  be."  Cannon  did  explain  that  the  manifesto  was  the 
result  of  prayer,  and  Woodruff  told  the  people  that  he  had  had  a 
great  many  visits  from  the  Prophet  Joseph  since  his  death,  in 
dreams,  and  also  from  Brigham  Young,  but  neither  seems  to  have 
imparted  any  very  valuable  information,  Joseph  explaining  that  he 
was  in  an  immense  hurry  preparing  himself  "  to  go  to  the  earth  with 
the  Great  Bridegroom  when  he  goes  to  meet  the  Bride,  the  Lamb's 
wife." 

Two  recent  incidents  have  indicated  the  restlessness  of  the 
Mormon  church  under  the  restriction  placed  upon  polygamy.  In 
1898,  the  candidate  for  Representative  in  Congress,  nominated  by 
the  Democratic  Convention  of  Utah,  was  Brigham  H.  Roberts.  It 
was  commonly  known  in  Utah  that  Roberts  was  a  violator  of  the 
Edmunds  law.  A  Mormon  elder,  writing  from  Brigham,  Utah,  in 
February,  1899,  while  Roberts's  case  was  under  consideration  at 
Washington,  said,  "  Many  prominent  Mormons  foresaw  the  storm 
that  was  now  raging,  and  deprecated  Mr.  Roberts's  nomination  and 
election."  *  This  statement  proves  both  the  notoriety  of  Roberts's 
offence,  and  the  connivance  of  the  church  in  his  nomination,  be- 
cause no  Mormon  can  be  nominated  to  an  office  in  Utah  when  the 
church  authorities  order  otherwise.  When  Roberts  presented  him- 
self to  be  sworn  in,  in  December,  1899,  his  case  was  referred  to  a 
special  committee  of  nine  members.  The  report  of  seven  members 
of  this  committee  found  that  Roberts  married  his  first  wife  about 
the  year  1878 ;  that  about  1885  he  married  a  plural  wife,  who  had 
since  born  him  six  children,  the  last  two  twins,  born  on  August  11, 
1897;  that  some  years  later  he  married  a  second  plural  wife,  and 
that  he  had  been  living  with  all  three  till  the  time  of  his  election ; 
"  that  these  facts  were  generally  known  in  Utah,  publicly  charged 
against  him  during  his  campaign  for  election,  and  were  not  denied 
by  him."  Roberts  refused  to  take  the  stand  before  the  committee, 
and  demurred  to  its  jurisdiction  on  the  ground  that  the  hearing  was 
an  attempt  to  try  him  for  a  crime  without  an  indictment  and  jury 
trial,  and  to  deprive  him  of  vested  rights  in  the  emoluments  of 
the  office  to  which  he  was  elected,  and  that,  if  the  crime  alleged 
was  proved,  it  would  not  constitute  a  sufficient  cause  to  deprive  him 
of  his  seat,  because  polygamy  is  not  enumerated  in  the  constitution 

1  New  York  Evening  Post,  February  20,  1899. 


THE   FIGHT   AGAINST   POLYGAMY  — STATEHOOD         605 

as  a  disqualification  for  the  office  of  member  of  Congress.  The 
majority  report  recommended  that  his  seat  be  declared  vacant. 
Two  members  of  the  committee  reported  that  his  offence  afforded 
constitutional  ground  for  expulsion,  but  not  for  exclusion  from  the 
House,  and  recommended  that  he  be  sworn  in  and  immediately 
expelled.  The  resolution  presented  by  the  majority  was  adopted 
by  the  House  by  a  vote  of  268  to  50.1 

The  second  incident  referred  to  was  the  passage  by  the  Utah 
legislature  in  March,  1901,  of  a  bill  containing  this  provision:  — 

"  No  prosecution  for  adultery  shall  be  commenced  except  on  complaint  of 
the  husband  or  wife  or  relative  of  the  accused  with  the  first  degree  of  consan- 
guinity, or  of  the  person  with  whom  the  unlawful  act  is  alleged  to  have  been  com- 
mitted, or  of  the  father  or  mother  of  said  person ;  and  no  prosecution  for 
unlawful  cohabitation  shall  be  commenced  except  on  complaint  of  the  wife,  or 
alleged  plural  wife  of  the  accused ;  but  this  provision  shall  not  apply  to  prosecu- 
tions under  section  4208  of  the  Revised  Statutes,  1898,  defining  and  punishing 
polygamous  marriages." 

This  bill  passed  the  Utah  senate  by  a  vote  of  1 1  to  7,  and  the 
house  by  a  vote  of  174  to  25.  The  excuse  offered  for  it  by  the 
senator  who  introduced  it  was  that  it  would  "  take  away  from  cer- 
tain agitators  the  opportunity  to  arouse  periodic  furors  against  the 
Mormons "  ;  that  more  than  half  of  the  persons  who  had  been 
polygamists  had  died  or  dissolved  their  polygamous  relations,  and 
that  no  good  service  could  be  subserved  by  prosecuting  the  re- 
mainder. This  law  aroused  a  protest  throughout  the  country,  and 
again  the  Mormon  church  saw  that  it  had  made  a  mistake,  and  on 
the  14th  of  March  Governor  H.  M.  Wells  vetoed  the  bill,  on 
grounds  that  may  be  summarized  as  declaring  that  the  law  would 
do  the  Mormons  more  harm  than  good.  The  most  significant  part 
of  his  message,  as  indicating  what  the  Mormon  authorities  most 
dread,  is  contained  in  the  following  sentence :  "  I  have  every  rea- 
son to  believe  its  enactment  would  be  the  signal  for  a  general 
demand  upon  the  national  Congress  for  a  constitutional  amend- 
ment directed  solely  against  certain  conditions  here,  a  demand 
which,  under  the  circumstances,  would  assuredly  be  complied 
with." 

1  Roberts  was  tried  in  the  district  court  in  Salt  Lake  City,  on  April  30,  1900,  on 
the  charge  of  unlawful  cohabitation.  The  case  was  submitted  to  the  jury  of  eight  men, 
without  testimony,  on  an  agreed  statement  of  facts,  and  the  jury  disagreed,  standing  six 
for  conviction  and  two  for  acquittal. 


606  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

The  admission  of  Utah  as  a  state  followed  naturally  the  pro- 
mulgation by  the  Mormon  church  of  a  policy  which  was  accepted 
by  the  non-Mormons  as  putting  a  practical  end  to  the  practice  of 
polygamy.  For  the  seventh  time,  in  1887,  the  Mormons  had 
adopted  a  state  constitution,  the  one  ratified  in  that  year  providing 
that  "bigamy  and  polygamy,  being  considered  incompatible  with 
«  a  republican  form  of  government,'  each  of  them  is  hereby  for- 
bidden and  declared  a  misdemeanor."  The  non-Mormons  attacked 
the  sincerity  of  this  declaration,  among  other  things  pointing 
out  the  advice  of  the  Church  organ,  while  the  constitution  was 
before  the  people,  that  they  be  "as  wise  as  serpents  and  as  harm- 
less as  doves."     Congress  again  refused  admission. 

On  January  4,  1893,  President  Harrison  issued  a  proclamation 
granting  amnesty  and  pardon  to  all  persons  liable  to  the  penalty 
of  the  Edmunds  law  "  who  have,  since  November  1,  1890,  abstained 
from  such  unlawful  cohabitation,"  but  on  condition  that  they 
should  in  future  obey  the  laws  of  the  United  States.  Until  the 
time  of  Woodruff's  manifesto  there  had  been  in  Utah  only  two 
political  parties,  the  People's,  as  the  Mormon  organization  had 
always  been  known,  and  the  Liberal  (anti-Mormon).  On  June  10, 
1 89 1,  the  People's  Territorial  Central  Committee  adopted  resolu- 
tions reciting  the  organization  of  the  Republicans  and  Democrats 
of  the  territory,  declaring  that  the  dissensions  of  the  past  should  be 
left  behind  and  that  the  People's  party  should  dissolve.  The 
Republican  Territorial  Committee  a  few  days  later  voted  that  a 
division  of  the  people  on  national  party  lines  would  result  only  in 
statehood  controlled  by  the  Mormon  theocracy.  The  Democratic 
committee  eight  days  later  took  a  directly  contrary  view.  At  the 
territorial  election  in  the  following  August  the  Democrats  won, 
the  vote  standing:  Democratic,  14,116;  Liberal,  7386;  Republi- 
can, 6613. 

It  would  have  been  contrary  to  all  political  precedent  if  the 
Republicans  had  maintained  their  attitude  after  the  Democrats 
had  expressed  their  willingness  to  receive  Mormon  allies.  Accord- 
ingly, in  September,  1891,  we  find  the  Republicans  adopting  a 
declaration  that  it  would  be  wise  and  patriotic  to  accept  the  changes 
that  had  occurred,  and  denying  that  statehood  was  involved  in  a 
division  of  the  people  on  national  party  lines. 

All  parties  in  the  territory  now  seemed  to  be  manoeuvring  for 


THE   FIGHT   AGAINST   POLYGAMY  — STATEHOOD         607 

position.  The  Morman  newspaper  organs  expressed  complete 
indifference  about  securing  statehood.  In  Congress  Mr.  Caine, 
the  Utah  Delegate,  introduced  what  was  known  as  the  "  Home 
Rule  Bill,"  taking  the  control  of  territorial  affairs  from  the  gov- 
ernor and  commission.  This  was  known  as  a  Democratic  measure, 
and  great  pressure  was  brought  to  bear  on  Republican  leaders  at 
Washington  to  show  them  that  Utah  as  a  state  would  in  all  prob- 
ability add  to  the  strength  of  the  Republican  column.  When,  at 
the  first  session  of  the  53d  Congress,  J.  L.  Rawlins,  a  Democrat 
who  had  succeeded  Caine  as  Delegate,  introduced  an  act  to  enable 
the  people  of  Utah  to  gain  admission  for  the  territory  as  a  state,  it 
met  with  no  opposition  at  home,  passed  the  House  of  Representa- 
tives on  December  13,  1893,  and  the  Senate  on  July  10,  1894 
(without  a  division  in  either  House),  and  was  signed  by  the  President 
on  July  16.  The  enabling  act  required  the  constitutional  conven- 
tion to  provide  "  by  ordinance  irrevocable  without  the  consent  of 
the  United  States  and  the  people  of  that  state,  that  perfect  tolera- 
tion of  religious  sentiment  shall  be  secured,  and  that  no  inhabitant 
of  said  state  shall  ever  be  molested  in  person  or  property  on 
account  of  his  or  her  mode  of  religious  worship ;  provided,  that 
polygamous  or  plural  marriages  are  forever  prohibited." 

The  constitutional  convention  held  under  this  act  met  in  Salt 
Lake  City  on  March  4,  1895,  and  completed  its  work  on  May  8, 
following.  In  the  election  of  delegates  for  this  convention  the 
Democrats  cast  about  19,000  votes,  the  Republicans  about  21,000 
and  the  Populists  about  6500.  Of  the  107  delegates  chosen,  48 
were  Democrats  and  59  Republicans.  The  constitution  adopted 
contained  the  following  provisions  :  — 

"Art.  I.  Sec.  4.  The  rights  of  conscience  shall  never  be  infringed.  The 
state  shall  make  no  law  respecting  an  establishment  of  religion  or  prohibiting  the 
free  exercise  thereof  ;  no  religious  test  shall  be  required  as  a  qualification  for 
any  office  of  public  trust,  or  for  any  vote  at  any  election  ;  nor  shall  any  person  be 
incompetent  as  a  witness  or  juror  on  account  of  religious  belief  or  the  absence 
thereof.  There  shall  be  no  union  of  church  and  state,  nor  shall  any  church 
dominate  the  state  or  interfere  with  its  functions.  No  public  money  or  property 
shallbe  appropriated  for  or  applied  to  any  religious  worship,  exercise,  or  instruction, 
or  for  the  support  of  any  ecclesiastical  establishment. 

"Art.  III.  The  following  ordinance  shall  be  irrevocable  without  the  consent 
of  the  United  States  and  the  people  of  this  state :  Perfect  toleration  of  religious 
sentiment  is  guaranteed.     No  inhabitant  of  this  state  shall  ever  be  molested  in 


6o8 


THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 


person  or  property  on  account  of  his  or  her  mode  of  religious  worship  ;  but  polyg- 
amous or  plural  marriages  are  forever  prohibited." 

This  constitution  was  submitted  to  the  people  on  November  5, 
1895,  and  was  ratified  by  a  vote  of  31,305  to  7687,  the  Republicans 
at  the  same  election  electing  their  entire  state  ticket  and  a  majority 
of  the  legislature.  On  January  4,  1896,  President  Cleveland  issued 
a  proclamation  announcing  the  admission  of  Utah  as  a  state.  The 
inauguration  of  the  new  state  officers  took  place  at  Salt  Lake  City 
two  days  later.  The  first  governor,  Heber  M.  Wells,1  in  his 
inaugural  address  made  this  declaration  :  "  Let  us  learn  to  resent 
the  absurd  attacks  that  are  made  from  time  to  time  upon  our  sin- 
cerity by  ignorant  and  prejudiced  persons  outside  of  Utah,  and  let 
us  learn  to  know  and  respect  each  other  more,  and  thus  cement 
and  intensify  the  fraternal  sentiments  now  so  widespread  in  our 
community,  to  the  end  that,  by  a  mighty  unity  of  purpose  and 
Christian  resolution,  we  may  be  able  to  insure  that  domestic  tran- 
quillity, promote  that  general  welfare,  and  secure  those  blessings 
of  liberty  to  ourselves  and  our  posterity  guaranteed  by  the  con- 
stitution of  the  United  States." 

The  vote  of  Utah  since  its  admission  as  a  state  has  been  cast 
as  follows :  — 


1895.  Governor 

1896.  President 
1900.  Governor 
1900.  President 


1  Son  of  "  General "  Wells  of  the  Nauvoo  Legion. 


CHAPTER   XXV 

THE  MORMONISM  OF  TO-DAY 

An  intelligent  examination  of  the  present  status  of  the  Mormon 
church  can  be  made  only  after  acquaintance  with  its  past  history, 
and  the  policy  of  the  men  who  have  given  it  its  present  doctrinal 
and  political  position.  The  Mormon  power  has  ever  in  view 
objects  rather  than  methods.  It  always  keeps  those  objects  in 
view,  while  at  times  adjusting  methods  to  circumstances,  as  was 
the  case  in  its  latest  treatment  of  the  doctrine  of  polygamy.  The 
casual  visitor,  making  a  tour  of  observation  in  Utah,  and  the 
would-be  student  of  Mormon  policies  who  satisfies  himself  with 
reading  their  books  of  doctrine  instead  of  their  early  history,  is 
certain  to  acquire  little  knowledge  of  the  real  Mormon  character 
and  the  practical  Mormon  ambition,  and  if  he  writes  on  the  sub- 
ject he  will  contribute  nothing  more  authentic  than  does  Schouler 
in  his  "  History  of  the  United  States "  wherein  he  calls  Joseph 
Smith  "a  careful  organizer,"  and  says  that  "it  was  a  part  of  his 
creed  to  manage  well  the  material  concerns  of  his  people,  as  they 
fed  their  flocks  and  raised  their  produce."  Brigham  Young's  con- 
stant cry  was  that  all  the  Mormons  asked  was  to  be  left  alone. 
Nothing  suits  the  purposes  of  the  heads  of  the  church  to-day 
better  than  the  decrease  of  public  attention  attracted  to  their 
organization  since  the  Woodruff  manifesto  concerning  polygamy. 
In  trying  to  arrive  at  a  reasonable  decision  concerning  their  future 
place  in  American  history,  one  must  constantly  bear  in  mind  the 
arguments  which  they  have  to  offer  to  religious  enthusiasts,  and 
the  political  and  commercial  power  which  they  have  already 
attained  and  which  they  are  constantly  strengthening. 

The  growth  of  Utah  in  population  since  its  settlement  by  the 
Mormons  has  been  as  follows,  accepting  the  figures  of  the  United 
States  census :  — 

2  r  609 


6lO  THE   STORY   OF  THE   MORMONS 

1850 11,380 

i860 40,273 

1870 86,786 

1880 I43>963 

1890 207,905 

1900 276,749 

The  census  of  1890  (the  religious  statistics  of  the  census  of 
1900  are  not  yet  available)  shows  that,  of  a  total  church  member- 
ship of  128,115  m  Utah,  the  Latter-Day  Saints  numbered  118,201. 

What  may  be  called  the  Mormon  political  policy  embraces 
these  objects  :  to  maintain  the  dictatorial  power  of  the  priesthood 
over  the  present  church  membership ;  to  extend  that  membership 
over  the  adjoining  states  so  as  to  acquire  in  the  latter,  first  a 
balance  of  power,  and  later  complete  political  control ;  to  con- 
tinue the  work  of  proselyting  throughout  the  United  States  and  in 
foreign  lands  with  a  view  to  increasing  the  strength  of  the  church 
at  home  by  the  immigration  to  Utah  of  the  converts. 

That  the  power  of  the  Mormon  priesthood  over  their  flock  has 
never  been  more  autocratic  than  it  is  to-day  is  the  testimony  of  the 
best  witnesses  who  may  be  cited.  A  natural  reason  for  this  may 
be  found  in  the  strength  which  always  comes  to  a  religious  sect 
with  age,  if  it  survives  the  period  of  its  infancy.  We  have  seen 
that  in  the  early  days  of  the  church  its  members  apostatized  in 
scores,  intimate  acquaintance  with  Smith  and  his  associates  soon 
disclosing  to  men  of  intelligence  and  property  their  real  objects. 
But  the  church  membership  in  and  around  Utah  to-day  is  made  up 
of  the  children  and  the  grandchildren  of  men  and  women  who 
remained  steadfast  in  their  faith.  These  younger  generations  are 
therefore  influenced  in  their  belief,  not  only  by  such  appeals  as  what 
is  taught  to  them  makes  to  their  reason,  but  by  the  fact  that  these 
teachings  are  the  teachings  which  have  been  accepted  by  their 
ancestors.  It  is,  therefore,  vastly  more  difficult  to  convince  a 
younger  Mormon  to-day  that  his  belief  rests  on  a  system  of  fraud 
than  it  was  to  enforce  a  similar  argument  on  the  minds  of  men  and 
women  who  joined  the  Saints  in  Ohio  or  Illinois.  We  find,  accord- 
ingly, that  apostasies  in  Utah  are  of  comparatively  rare  occur- 
rence ;  that  men  of  all  classes  accept  orders  to  go  on  missions  to 
all  parts  of  the  world  without  question  ;  and  that  the  tithings  are 
paid  with  greater  regularity  than  they  have  been  since  the  days  of 
Brigham  Young. 


THE   MORMONISM   OF   TO-DAY 


6n 


The  extension  of  the  membership  of  the  Mormon  church  over 
the  states  and  territories  nearest  to  Utah  has  been  carried  on  with 
intelligent  zeal.  The  census  of  1890  gives  the  following  compari- 
son of  members  of  Latter-Day  Saints  churches  and  of  "  all  bodies  " 
in  the  states  and  territories  named  :  — 


L.-D.  Saints 


All  Bodies 


Idaho 
Arizona   . 
Nevada    . 
Wyoming 
Colorado 
New  Mexico 


14,972 

6,500 

525 

1,762 
456 


24,036 
26,972 

5,877 

11,705 

86,837 

105,749 


The  political  influence  of  the  Mormon  church  in  all  the  states 
and  territories  adjacent  to  Utah  is  already  great,  amounting  in 
some  instances  to  practical  dictation.  It  is  not  necessary  that  any 
body  of  voters  should  have  the  actual  control  of  the  politics  of  a 
state  to  insure  to  them  the  respect  of  political  managers.  The 
control  of  certain  counties  will  insure  to  them  the  subserviency  of 
the  local  politicians,  who  will  speak  a  good  word  for  them  at  the 
state  capital,  and  the  prospect  that  they  will  have  greater  influence 
in  the  future  will  be  pressed  upon  the  attention  of  the  powers  that 
be.  We  have  seen  how  steadily  the  politicians  of  California  at 
Washington  stood  by  the  Mormons  in  their  earlier  days,  when 
they  were  seeking  statehood  and  opposing  any  federal  control  of 
their  affairs.  The  business  reasons  which  influenced  the  Califor- 
nians  are  a  thousand  times  more  effective  to-day.  The  Coopera- 
tive Institution  has  a  hold  on  the  Eastern  firms  from  which  it  buys 
goods,  and  every  commercial  traveller  who  visits  Utah  to  sell  the 
goods  of  his  employers  to  Mormon  merchants  learns  that  a  good 
word  for  his  customers  is  always  appreciated.  The  large  corpora- 
tions that  are  organized  under  the  laws  of  Utah  (and  this  includes 
the  Union  Pacific  Railroad  Company)  are  always  in  some  way 
beholden  to  the  Mormon  legislative  power.  All  this  sufficiently 
indicates  the  measures  quietly  taken  by  the  Mormon  church  to 
guard  itself  against  any  further  federal  interference. 

The  mission  work  of  the  Mormon  church  has  always  been  con- 
ducted with  zeal  and  efficiency,  and  it  is  so  continued  to-day.    The 


/ 


6l2  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

church  authorities  in  Utah  no  longer  give  out  definite  statistics 
showing  the  number  of  missionaries  in  the  field,  and  the  number 
of  converts  brought  to  Utah  from  abroad.  The  number  of  mis- 
sionaries at  work  in  October,  1901,  was  stated  to  me  by  church 
officers  at  from  fourteen  hundred  to  nineteen  hundred,  the  smaller 
number  being  insisted  upon  as  correct  by  those  who  gave  it.  As 
nearly  as  could  be  ascertained,  about  one-half  this  force  is  employed 
in  the  United  States  and  the  rest  abroad.  The  home  field  most 
industriously  cultivated  has  been  the  rural  districts  of  the  Southern 
states,  whose  ignorant  population,  ever  susceptible  to  "  preaching" 
of  any  kind,  and  quite  incapable  of  answering  the  Mormon  inter- 
pretation of  the  Scriptures,  is  most  easily  lead  to  accept  the  Mor- 
mon views.  When  such  people  are  offered  an  opportunity  to 
improve  their  worldly  condition,  as  they  are  told  they  may  do  in 
Utah,  at  the  same  time  that  they  can  save  their  souls,  the  bait 
is  a  tempting  one.  The  number  of  missionaries  now  at  work  in 
these  Southern  states  is  said  to  be  much  smaller  than  it  was  two 
years  ago.  Meanwhile  the  work  of  proselyting  in  the  Eastern 
Atlantic  states  has  become  more  active.  The  Mormons  have  their 
headquarters  in  Brooklyn,  New  York,  and  their  missionaries  make 
visits  in  all  parts  of  Greater  New  York.  They  leave  a  great  many 
tracts  in  private  houses,  explaining  that  they  will  make  another 
call  later,  and  doing  so  if  they  receive  the  least  encouragement. 
They  take  great  pains  to  reach  servant  girls  with  their  literature 
and  arguments,  and  the  story  has  been  published l  of  a  Mormon 
missionary  who  secured  employment  as  a  butler,  and  made  himself 
so  efficient  that  his  employer  confided  to  him  the  engagement  of 
all  the  house  servants ;  in  time  the  frequent  changes  which  he 
made  aroused  suspicion,  and  an  investigation  disclosed  the  fact  that 
he  was  a  Mormon  of  good  education,  who  used  his  position  as  head 
servant  to  perform  effective  proselyting  work.  By  promise  of  a 
husband  and  a  home  of  her  own  on  her  arrival  in  Utah,  this  man 
was  said  to  have  induced  sixty  girls  to  migrate  from  New  York 
City  to  that  state  since  he  began  his  labors. 

The  Mormons  estimate  the  membership  of  their  church  through- 
out the  world  at  a  little  over  300,000.  The  numbers  of  "  souls  "in 
the  church  abroad  was  thus  reported  for  the  year  ending  December 
31,  1899,  as  published  in  the  Millennial  Star:  — 

1  New  York  Sun,  January  27,  1901. 


THE   MORMONISM   OF   TO-DAY  613 

Great  Britain 4,588 

Scandinavia 5,438 

Germany 1,198 

Switzerland 1,078 

Netherlands J>556 

These  figures  indicate  a  great  falling  off  in  the  church  con- 
stituency in  Europe  as  compared  with  the  year  185 1,  when  the 
number  of  Mormons  in  Great  Britain  and  Ireland  was  reported 
at  more  than  thirty  thousand.  Many  influences  have  contributed 
to  decrease  the  membership  of  the  church  abroad  and  the  number 
of  converts  which  the  church  machinery  has  been  able  to  bring  to 
Utah.  We  have  seen  that  the  announcement  of  polygamy  as  a 
necessary  belief  of  the  church  was  a  blow  to  the  organization 
in  Europe.  The  misrepresentation  made  to  converts  abroad  to 
induce  them  to  migrate  to  Utah,  as  illustrated  in  the  earlier  years 
of  the  church,  has  always  been  continued,  and  naturally  many  of 
the  deceived  immigrants  have  sent  home  accounts  of  their  decep- 
tion. A  book  could  be  filled  with  stories  of  the  experiences  of  men 
and  women  who  have  gone  to  Utah,  accepting  the  promises  held 
out  to  them  by  the  missionaries,  —  such  as  productive  farms,  paying 
business  enterprises,  or  remunerative  employment,  —  only  to  find 
their  expectations  disappointed,  and  themselves  stranded  in  a 
country  where  they  must  perform  the  hardest  labor  in  order  to  sup- 
port themselves,  if  they  had  not  the  means  with  which  to  return 
home.  The  effect  of  such  revelations  has  made  some  parts  of 
Europe  an  unpleasant  field  for  the  visits  of  Mormon  missionaries. 

The  government  at  Washington,  during  the  operation  of  the 
Perpetual  Emigration  Fund  organization,  realized  the  evil  of  the 
introduction  of  so  many  Mormon  converts  from  abroad.  On 
August  9,  1879,  Secretary  of  State  William  M.  Evarts  sent  out  a 
circular  to  the  diplomatic  officers  of  the  United  States  throughout 
the  world,  calling  their  attention  to  the  fact  that  the  organized 
shipment  of  immigrants  intended  to  add  to  the  number  of  law- 
defying  polygamists  in  Utah  was  "  a  deliberate  and  systematic 
attempt  to  bring  persons  to  the  United  States  with  the  intent  of 
violating  their  laws  and  committing  crimes  expressly  punishable 
under  the  statute  as  penitentiary  offences,"  and  instructing  them  to 
call  the  attention  of  the  governments  to  which  they  were  accredited 
to  this  matter,  in  order  that  those  governments  might  take  such 


614  THE   STORY   OF  THE   MORMONS 

steps  as  were  compatible  with  their  laws  and  usages  "  to  check  the 
organization  of  these  criminal  enterprises  by  agents  who  are  thus 
operating  beyond  the  reach  of  the  law  of  the  United  States,  and 
to  prevent  the  departure  of  those  proposing  to  come  hither  as 
violators  of  the  law  by  engaging  in  such  criminal  enterprises, 
by  whomsoever  instigated."  President  Cleveland,  in  his  first  mes- 
sage, recommended  the  passage  of  a  law  to  prevent  the  importation 
of  Mormons  into  the  United  States.  The  Edmunds-Tucker  law 
contained  a  provision  dissolving  the  Perpetual  Emigration  Com- 
pany, and  forbidding  the  Utah  legislature  to  pass  any  law  to  bring 
persons  into  the  territory.  Mormon  authorities  have  informed 
me  that  there  has  been  no  systematic  immigration  work  since  the 
prosecutions  under  the  Edmunds  law.  But  as  it  is  conceded  that 
the  Mormons  make  practically  no  proselytes  among  their  Gentile 
neighbors,  they  must  still  look  largely  to  other  fields  for  that 
increase  of  their  number  which  they  have  in  view. 

As  a  part  of  their  system  of  colonizing  the  neighboring  states 
and  territories,  they  have  made  settlements  in  the  Dominion  of 
i  Canada  and  in  Mexico.  Their  Canadian  settlement  is  situated 
in  Alberta.  A  report  to  the  Superintendent  of  Immigration  at 
Ottawa,  dated  December  30,  1899,  stated  that  the  Mormon  colony 
there  comprised  1700  souls,  all  coming  from  Utah  ;  and  that  "  they 
are  a  very  progressive  people,  with  good  schools  and  churches." 
When  they  first  made  their  settlement  they  gave  a  pledge  to  the 
Dominion  government  that  they  would  refrain  from  the  practice 
of  polygamy  while  in  that  country.  In  1889  the  Department  of 
the  Interior  at  Ottawa  was  informed  that  the  Mormons  were  not 
observing  this  pledge,  but  investigation  convinced  the  department 
that  this  accusation  was  not  true.  However,  in  1890,  an  amend- 
ment to  the  criminal  law  of  the  Dominion  was  enacted  (clause  II, 
53  Victoria,  Chap.  37),  making  any  person  guilty  of  a  misdemeanor, 
and  liable  to  imprisonment  for  five  years  and  a  fine  of  $500, 
who  practises  any  form  of  polygamy  or  spiritual  marriage,  or 
celebrates  or  assists  in  any  such  marriage  ceremony. 

The  Secretario  de  Fomento  of  Mexico,  under  date  of  May  4, 
1901,  informed  me  that  the  number  of  Mormon  colonists  in  that 
country  was  then  2319,  located  in  seven  places  in  Chihuahua  and 
Sonora.  He  added:  "The  laws  of  this  country  do  not  permit 
polygamy.     The  government  has  never  encouraged  the  immigra- 


THE   MORMONISM   OF   TO-DAY  615 

tion  of  Mormons,  only  that  of  foreigners  of  good  character  — 
working  people  who  may  be  useful  to  the  republic.  And  in  the 
contracts  made  for  the  establishment  of  those  [Mormon]  colonies 
it  was  stipulated  that  they  should  be  formed  only  of  foreigners 
embodying  all  the  aforesaid  conditions." 

No  student  of  the  question  of  polygamy,  as  a  doctrine  and  prac- 
tice of  the  Mormon  church,  can  reach  any  other  conclusion  than 
that  it  is  simply  held  in  abeyance  at  the  present  time,  with  an  ex- 
pectation of  a  removal  of  the  check  now  placed  upon  it.  The 
impression,  which  undoubtedly  prevails  throughout  other  parts  of 
the  United  States,  that  polygamy  was  finally  abolished  by  the 
Woodruff  manifesto  and  the  terms  of  statehood,  is  founded  on  an 
ignorance  of  the  compulsory  character  of  the  doctrine  of  polygamy, 
of  the  narrowness  of  President  Woodruff's  decree,  and  of  the  part 
which  polygamous  marriages  have  been  given,  by  the  church  doc- 
trinal teachings,  in  the  plan  of  salvation.  The  sketch  of  the  various 
steps  leading  up  to  the  Woodruff  manifesto  shows  that  even  that 
slight  concession  to  public  opinion  was  made,  not  because  of  any 
change  of  view  by  the  church  itself  concerning  polygamy,  but 
simply  to  protect  the  church  members  from  the  loss  of  every  privi- 
lege of  citizenship.  That  manifesto  did  not  in  any  way  condemn 
the  polygamous  doctrine ;  it  simply  advised  the  Saints  to  submit  to 
the  United  States  law  against  polygamy,  with  the  easily  under- 
stood but  unexpressed  explanation  that  it  was  to  their  temporal 
advantage  to  do  so.  How  strictly  this  advice  has  since  been  lived 
up  to  —  to  what  extent  polygamous  practices  have  since  been  con- 
tinued in  Utah  —  it  is  not  necessary,  in  a  work  of  this  kind,  to  try 
to  ascertain.  The  most  intelligent  non-Mormon  testimony  obtain- 
able in  the  territory  must  be  discarded  if  we  are  to  believe  that 
polygamous  relations  have  not  been  continued  in  many  instances. 
This,  too,  would  be  only  what  might  naturally  be  expected  among 
a  people  who  had  so  long  been  taught  that  plural  marriages  were 
a  religious  duty,  and  that  the  check  to  them  was  applied,  not  by 
their  church  authorities,  but  by  an  outside  government,  hostility  to 
which  had  long  been  inculcated  in  them. 

It  must  be  remembered  that  it  is  a  part  of  the  doctrine  of  polyg- 
amy that  woman  can  enter  heaven  only  as  sealed  to  some  devout 
member  of  the  Mormon  church  "for  time  and  eternity,"  and  that 
the  space  around  the  earth  is  filled  with  spirits  seeking  some  "tab- 


t^ 


616  THE   STORY   OF   THE   MORMONS 

ernacles  of  clay"  by  means  of  which  they  may  attain  salvation. 
Through  the  teaching  of  this  doctrine,  which  is  accepted  as  explic- 
itly by  the  membership  of  the  Mormon  church  at  large  as  is  any 
doctrine  by  a  Protestant  denomination,  the  Mormon  women  believe 
that  the  salvation  of  their  sex  depends  on  "  sealed  "  marriages,  and 
that  the  more  children  they  can  bring  into  the  world  the  more 
spirits  they  assist  on  the  road  to  salvation.  In  the  earlier  days  of 
the  church,  as  Brigham  Young  himself  testified,  the  bringing  in  of 
new  wives  into  a  family  produced  discord  and  heartburnings,  and 
many  pictures  have  been  drawn  of  the  agony  endured  by  a  wife 
number  one  when  her  husband  became  a  polygamist.  All  the 
testimony  I  can  obtain  in  regard  to  the  Mormonism  of  to-day  shows 
that  the  Mormon  women  are  now  the  most  earnest  advocates  of 
polygamous  marriages.  Said  one  competent  observer  in  Salt  Lake 
City  to  me,  "  As  the  women  of  the  South,  during  the  war,  were 
the  rankest  rebels,  so  the  women  of  Mormondom  are  to-day  the 
most  zealous  advocates  of  polygamy." 

By  precisely  what  steps  the  church  may  remove  the  existing 
prohibition  of  polygamous  marriages  I  shall  not  attempt  to  decide. 
It  is  easy,  however,  to  state  the  one  enactment  which  would  pre- 
vent the  success  of  any  such  effort.  This  would  be  the  adoption 
by  Congress  and  ratification  by  the  necessary  number  of  states  of 
a  constitutional  amendment  making  the  practice  of  polygamy  an 
offence  under  the  federal  law,  and  giving  the  federal  courts  juris- 
diction to  punish  any  violators  of  this  law.  The  Mormon  church 
recognizes  this  fact,  and  whenever  such  an  amendment  comes 
before  Congress  all  its  energies  will  be  directed  to  prevent  its  rati- 
fication. Governor  Wells's  warning  in  his  message  vetoing  the 
Utah  Act  of  March,  1901,  concerning  prosecutions  for  adultery, 
that  its  enactment  would  be  the  signal  for  a  general  demand  for 
the  passage  of  a  constitutional  amendment  against  polygamy, 
showed  how  far  the  executive  thought  it  necessary  to  go  to  pre- 
vent even  the  possibility  of  such  an  amendment.  One  of  the  main 
reasons  why  the  Mormons  are  so  constantly  increasing  their  num- 
bers in  the  neighboring  states  is  that  they  may  secure  the  vote  of 
those  states  against  an  anti-polygamy  amendment.  Whenever 
such  an  amendment  is  introduced  at  Washington  it  will  be  found 
that  every  Mormon  influence  —  political,  mercantile,  and  railroad 
—  will  be  arrayed  against  it,  and  its  passage  is  unlikely  unless  the 


THE   MORMONISM   OF   TO-DAY  617 

church  shall  make  some  misstep  which  will  again  direct  public 
attention  to  it  in  a  hostile  manner. 

The  devout  Mormon  has  no  more  doubt  that  his  church  will 
dominate  this  nation  eventually  than  he  has  in  the  divine  character 
of  his  prophet's  revelations.  Absurd  as  such  a  claim  appears  to 
all  non-Mormon  citizens,  in  these  days  when  Mormonism  has  suc- 
ceeded in  turning  public  attention  away  from  the  sect,  it  is  interest- 
ing to  trace  the  church  view  of  this  matter,  along  with  the  impression 
which  the  Mormon  power  has  made  on  some  of  its  close  observers. 
The  early  leaders  made  no  concealment  of  their  claim  that  Mor- 
monism was  to  be  a  world  religion.  "  What  the  world  calls  '  Mor- 
monism '  will  rule  every  nation,"  said  Orson  Hyde.  "  God  has 
decreed  it,  and  his  own  right  arm  will  accomplish  it."  *  Brigham 
Young,  in  a  sermon  in  the  Tabernacle  on  February  15,  1856,  told 
his  people  that  their  expulsion  from  Missouri  was  revealed  to  him 
in  advance,  as  well  as  the  course  of  their  migrations,  and  he  added  : 
"  Mark  my  words.  Write  them  down.  This  people  as  a  church 
and  kingdom  will  go  from  the  west  to  the  east." 

Tullidge,  whose  works,  it  must  be  remembered,  were  submitted 
to  church  revision,  in  his  "  Life  of  Brigham  Young  "  thus  defines 
the  Mormon  view  of  the  political  mission  of  the  head  of  the  church  : 
"  He  is  simply  an  apostle  of  a  republican  nationality,  manifold  in 
its  genius ;  or,  in  popular  words,  he  is  the  chief  apostle  of  state 
rights  by  divine  appointment.  He  has  the  mission,  he  affirms,  and 
has  been  endowed  with  inspiration  to  preach  the  gospel  of  a  true 
democracy  to  the  nation,  as  well  as  the  gospel  for  the  remission  of 
sins,  and  he  believes  the  United  States  will  ultimately  need  his 
ministration  in  both  respects.  .  .  .  They  form  not,  therefore,  a 
rival  power  as  against  the  Union,  but  an  apostolic  ministry  to  it, 
and  their  political  gospel  is  state  rights  and  self-government.  This 
is  political  Mormonism  in  a  nutshell."2 

Tullidge  further  says  in  his  "  History  of  Salt  Lake  City  " 
(writing  in  1886):  "The  Mormons  from  the  first  have  existed  as  a 
society,  not  as  a  sect.  They  have  combined  the  two  elements  of 
organization — the  social  and  the  religious.  They  are  now  a  new 
society  power  in  the  world,  and  an  entirety  in  themselves.  They 
are  indeed  the  only  religious  community  in  Christendom  of  modern 
birth." 3 

1  Journal  of  Discourses,  Vol.  VII,  pp.  48-53.  2  p.  244.  8  p.  387. 


6l8  THE   STORY   OF  THE   MORMONS 

Some  of  the  closest  observers  of  the  Mormons  in  their  earlier 
days  took  them  very  seriously.  Thus  Josiah  Quincy,  after  visiting 
Joseph  Smith  at  Nauvoo,  wrote  that  it  was  "  by  no  means  impossi- 
ble "  that  the  answer  to  the  question,  "  What  historical  American 
of  the  nineteenth  century  has  exerted  the  most  powerful  influence 
upon  the  destiny  of  his  countrymen,"  would  not  be,  "Joseph  Smith." 
Governor  Ford  of  Illinois,  who  had  to  do  officially  with  the  Mor- 
mons during  most  of  their  stay  in  that  state,  afterward  wrote  con- 
cerning them :  "  The  Christian  world,  which  has  hitherto  regarded 
Mormonism  with  silent  contempt,  unhappily  may  yet  have  cause  to 
fear  its  rapid  increase.  Modern  society  is  full  of  material  for  such 
a  religion.  ...  It  is  to  be  feared  that,  in  the  course  of  a  century, 
some  gifted  man  like  Paul,  some  splendid  orator  who  will  be  able 
by  his  eloquence  to  attract  crowds  of  the  thousands  who  are  ever 
ready  to  hear  and  be  carried  away  by  the  sounding  brass  and  tin- 
kling cymbal  of  sparkling  oratory,  may  command  a  hearing,  may 
succeed  in  breathing  a  new  life  into  this  modern  Mohammedanism, 
and  make  the  name  of  the  martyred  Joseph  ring  as  loud,  and  stir 
the  souls  of  men  as  much,  as  the  mighty  name  of  Christ  itself."  * 

The  close  observers  of  Mormonism  in  Utah,  who  recognize  its 
aims,  but  think  that  its  days  of  greatest  power  are  over,  found  this 
opinion  on  the  fact  that  the  church  makes  practically  no  converts 
among  the  neighboring  Gentiles ;  and  that  the  increasing  mining 
and  other  business  interests  are  gradually  attracting  a  population 
of  non-Mormons  which  the  church  can  no  longer  offset  by  con- 
verts brought  in  from  the  East  and  from  foreign  lands.  Special 
stress  is  laid  on  the  future  restriction  on  Mormon  immigration 
that  will  be  found  in  the  lack  of  further  government  land  which 
may  be  offered  to  immigrants,  and  in  the  discouraging  stories  sent 
home  by  immigrants  who  have  been  induced  to  move  to  Utah  by 
the  false  representations  of  the  missionaries.  Unquestionably,  if 
the  Mormon  church  remains  stationary  as  regards  wealth  and 
membership,  it  will  be  overshadowed  by  its  surroundings.  What 
it  depends  on  to  maintain  its  present  status  and  to  increase  its 
power  is  the  loyal  devotion  of  the  body  of  its  adherents,  and  its 
skill  in  increasing  their  number  in  the  states  which  now  surround 
Utah,  and  eventually  in  other  states. 

1  Ford,  "History  of  Illinois,"  p.  359. 


INDEX 


Aaronic  Priesthood,  120. 

"  Abraham,  Book  of,"  140. 

Adam,    Brigham  Young's   doctrine  of,  116; 

settlement  in  Missouri,  195. 
Adam-ondi-Ahman,  revelation  about,  195;  last 

days  of  Mormons  in,  210,  211. 
Adoption,  doctrine  of,  280. 
Aikin  party,  murder  of,  450 ;  indictments  for, 

569- 

Alexander,  Col.  E.  B.,  leader  of  foremost  com- 
panies in  the  Mormon  "war,"  487;  reply 
to  Young,  488  ;  advance  toward  Salt  Lake 
City,  491,  492 ;  correspondence  with  Young, 
494-496. 

Allen,  Capt.  J.,  instructions  about  the  Bat- 
talion, 371. 

Alma,  94. 

Alphabet,  Mormon,  439. 

Amlicites,  54. 

Ammaron  hides  the  golden  plates,  91. 

Anderson,  Rosmos,  victim  of  blood  atone- 
ment, 456. 

Anthon,  Prof.  Charles,  account  of  Harris's 
visit,  39,  40. 

"Argus's"  letters  on  Mountain  Meadows 
massacre,  532. 

Apostasies,  early,  133 ;  reasons  for,  153. 

Apostles,  duties  of,  101 ;  revelation  on,  102, 
120. 

Archbold,  Ann,  on  Mormon  dishonesty,  332. 

Army  of  Zion,  180,  181. 

Arthur,  Charlotte,  on  endowment  oath,  355. 

Arthur,  Pres.  C.  A.,  on  polygamy,  595. 

"Articles  of  Faith,"  118. 

Atchison,  Gen.  D.  R.,  Smith's  counsel,  199; 
unpopularity  with  non-Mormons,  206;  in 
Missouri  legislature,  216. 

Atwater,  Darwin,  on  Rigdon's  early  declara- 
tions, 65. 

Avard,  S.,  reveals  Danite  constitution,  191 ; 
with  volunteers  for  Daviess  County,  198 ; 
arrest  and  confession,  209;  testimony 
against  Mormon  leaders,  212;  excommuni- 
cated, 213  note. 

11 .  S.  B.,  governor  of  Utah  Territory,  573. 


B 

Babbitt,  A.  W.,  delegate  to  Congress,  430; 
on  Salt  Lake  City  duties,  431 ;  refused  ad- 
mission, 431 ;  secretary  Utah  Territory,  467 ; 
his  death,  467  note. 

Babel,  tower  of,  departure  of  Jaredites,  90. 

Backenstos,  J.  B.,  mission  to  Gov.  Ford,  248 ; 
proclamations  and  action  as  sheriff,  336, 
337 ;  Lieut.  Worrell's  murder,  336 ;  resigna- 
tion demanded,  339;  course  during  "last 
war,"  346. 

Balzac,  on  seers,  5. 

Bancroft,  H.  H.,  "  History  of  Utah,"  viii;  on 
Rigdon,  75 ;  contradicted  by  J.  M.  Grant, 
466;  defence  of  Mountain  Meadows  mur- 
derers, 527  note. 

Bank  at  Kirtland,  story  of,  148-152;  redemp- 
tion of  a  bill  by  Smith,  265. 

Banks,  John,  shooting  of,  541. 

Baptism,  Disciples'  and  Mormon  doctrine,  64; 
Disciples'  tenet  in  Mormon  Bible,  93  note ; 
for  the  dead,  118,  119. 

Baskin,  R.  N.,  prosecutor,  568. 

Bateman,  W.,  part  in  Mountain  Meadows 
massacre,  522. 

Battalion,  the  Mormon,  how  organized,  371; 
false  claims  for,  371-373;  march  to  Cali- 
fornia, 373;  dispersal,  373;  meeting  the 
pioneers,  388 ;  in  Salt  Lake  City,  397. 

Bayard,  Senator  T.  F.,  reports  on  Morrill  Bill, 
590. 

Beadle,  J.  H.,  on  the  "  Reformation,"  444 ;  on 
Gov.  Dawson's  punishment,  538  ;  on  warn- 
ing to  Gov.  Hardin,  542;  on  outside 
influences,  570. 

Beaver  Island,  Wis..  Strang's  colony,  325. 

Beliefs,  man's  credulity,  2;  origin  of  Mormon, 
63,  64;  reasons  for  acceptance,  124,  126; 
outline  of  Mormon,  107-121. 

Bennett,  Gen.  James  A.,  for  Vice  President, 
253;  Emma's  alleged  statement  to,  323. 

Bennett,  Dr.  John  C,  biography,  236;  help  in 
securing  Nauvoo  charter,  236 ;  mayor  and 
general,  238 ;  inaugural  address,  239 ;  Mor- 
mon charges  against,  268;  letters  to  San- 
gamon Journal,  lectures,   and  book,  269; 


619 


620 


INDEX 


Mormon  licentiousness  charged,  270;  with 

Strang,  325. 
Benson,  A.  G.,  Brannan's  alleged  interview 

with,  388. 
Benson,  E.  T.,  proposed  settlement  in  Iowa, 

393- 
Bently,  Adamson,  connection  with  Rigdon, 

61 ;  on  Rigdon's  foreknowledge  of  Mormon 

Bible,  65. 
Benton,   R.   H.,  Mountain    Meadows   story, 

526. 
Benton,  R.  T.,  attack  on  Morrisites,  541. 
Benton,  T.  H.,  alleged  animosity  to  Mormons, 

372- 

Bernhisel,  J.  M.,  truth  about  the  Battalion, 
372  note;  Delegate  in  Congress,  501. 

Bible,  the  Mormon,  contradictory  accounts 
of,  by  the  Smiths,  14,  23,  26,  27;  Smith's 
confession  to  Peter  Ingersol,  24;  Abigail 
Harris's  statement,  25 ;  how  two  wags  un- 
covered the  plates,  26;  first  accounts  of  the 
discovery  of  the  plates,  statement  of  Smith's 
father,  28-30 ;  the  account  in  Smith's  auto- 
biography, 30-32;  Mother  Smith's  state- 
ments, 32-34 ;  Harris's  visit  to  Prof.  Anthon, 
38-41 ;  Mrs.  Harris's  seizure  of  translated 
pages,  41;  obstacles  to  retranslation,  42-46; 
descriptions  of  the  work  of  translation,  42; 
second  copy  made,  44  ;  substitution  of 
translation  from  plates  of  Nephi,  45; 
preface  to  first  edition,  45 ;  translating  at 
Whitmer's  house,  46 ;  publication  of,  47-49 ; 
its  printing,  47-49;  failure  to  secure  pur- 
chasers, 49 ;  expectations  of  a  new  Bible, 
65 ;  critical  examination  of,  89-97 ;  correc- 
tions made,  89;  disregard  of  by  Mormons, 
89;  facsimile  of  first  edition  title-page,  90; 
plates  made  by  Mormon,  91,  92;  books  of, 
90;  historical  narrative,  90-95;  why  "re- 
formed Egyptian"  was  used,  92;  Prof. 
Whitsitt's  analysis,  92  note ;  Christ  in,  94- 
96 ;  literary  style,  95  ;  chapters  of  Scripture 
introduced,  96;  anachronisms,  97;  gram- 
matical errors,  98 ;  necessity  of  acceptance 
by  Mormon  church,  98;  teachings  against 
polygamy,  272,  273. 

Bidamon,  Maj.  L.  C,  Emma's  second  hus- 
band, 44;  recovery  of  second  Ms.  of  Mor- 
mon Bible,  44. 

Big  Blue,  Mo.,  attack  on,  177,  178. 

Bird,  W.,  part  in  Parrish  murders,  449. 

Bishop,  Gladden,  436. 

Bishops,  the  first,  120;  to  hold  property,  146; 
as  city  magistrates,  429;  Young's  views  of, 
439  note,  442. 

Black,  Adam,  agreement  signed  by,  198. 

Black,  G.  A.,  secretary  and  acting  governor, 
Utah  Territory,  568. 

Black,  J.  S.,  attorney  general,  approval  of 
Floyd's  order,  535. 


Blair,  S.  M.,  attorney  general  Utah  Territory, 
458. 

Blessings,  patriarchal,  121. 

Blood  atonement,  J.  M.  Grant  the  inventor, 
444;  early  plan  for,  445;  the  Kayesville 
offenders,  445 ;    origin  and  practice,  454- 

457- 

Bogart,  Capt.,  at  Crooked  River,  203. 

Boggs,  Gov.,  non-Mormon  petition  to,  200 ; 
Gen.  Doniphan's  report  to,  201 ;  "  order 
of  extermination,"  205,  206;  attempted 
assassination  of,  245  ;  trip  to  California,  284. 

Bonneville's  explorations,  396. 

"Book  of  Commandments,"  112.  See  Reve- 
lations. 

"  Book  of  Doctrine  and  Covenants,"  publica- 
tion of,  in  Missouri,  112;  Kirtland  edition, 
112;  result  of  publication,  169.  See  Reve- 
lations. 

Booth,  Danforth,  concerning  Oliver  Cowdery, 
80. 

Booth,  Rev.  E.,  Harris's  statement  to,  36; 
conversion  to  Mormonism,  123,  126;  state- 
ment about  marriage  relations,  273. 

Boreman,  Judge  J.  S.,  presides  at  Lee's  trial, 

532- 

Boweries,  370. 

Bowles,  Samuel,  visit  to  Utah,  552. 

Boyd  of  Kentucky,  presents  Deseret  constitu- 
tion, 231. 

Boynton,  J.,  in  church  fight,  158. 

Brandebury,  L.  G.,  chief  justice  of  Utah  Ter- 
ritory, 458. 

Brannan,  S.,  emigration  to  California,  387, 
388  ;  alleged  agreement  with  Benson,  388. 

Brassfield,  O.  N.,  murder  of,  554. 

Brayman,  M.,  reports  to  Gov.  Ford,  343,  350, 

351.  367- 

Breastplate,  delivery  to  Smith,  32;  Mother 
Smith's  description,  32. 

Bremer,  murder  of,  536. 

Brewer,  Dr.  C,  on  Mountain  Meadow  Massa- 
cre, 516. 

Bridger,  Col.  James,  meets  Utah  pioneers, 
386;  his  fort,  389;  discoverer  of  Great  Salt 
Lake,  395;  guide  to  Col.  Johnston,  492. 

Brocchus,  P.  E.,  associate  justice  of  Utah 
Territory,  458;  address  to  the  Mormons, 
461,  462;  Young's  denunciation  of,  462; 
leaves  Utah,  465;  report  to  the  President, 

465- 
Brockman,  Col.,  part  in  "last  Mormon  war," 

348-35I- 

Bross,  Lieut.  Gov.,  visit  to  Utah,  552. 

Brown,  Col.  A.  G.,  Jr.,  on  government  con- 
tracts, 500;  on  amnesty  proclamation,  512; 
the  terms  to  the  Mormons,  514. 

Buchanan,  Pres.  James,  Mormon  appeal  to, 
477  ;  directs  the  organization  of  troops,  477  ; 
views  in  first  message,  478 ;  letters  to  Col. 


INDEX 


621 


Kane,  501,  502 ;  back-down  to  Young,  504 ; 
peace  message  to  Congress,  510;  amnesty 
proclamation,  511;  appointment  of  peace 
commissioners,  511. 

Buffaloes,  vast  herds  of,  381. 

Buffington,  J.,  chief  justice  of  Utah  Territory, 
458. 

Bullock,  T.,  experiences  during  the  migration, 
367,  368. 

Burgess,  Salem  trip,  147. 

"Burnings,"  the,  in  Illinois,  336,343. 

Burr,  D.  H.,  surveyor  general,  presence  re- 
sented, 473  ;  escape  from  Utah,  474. 


Caine,  J.  T.,  "  Home  Rule  Bill,"  607. 

Caldwell  County,  Mo.,  framed  for  the  Mor- 
mons, 187  ;  civil  war  in,  200,  201,  207-209. 

Calhoun,  J.C.,  Smith's  letter  to,  250. 

California,  the  rush  of  gold  seekers,  405-407 ; 
proposed  consolidation  with  Deseret,  430; 
complaints  of  emigrants  to,  440 ;  exodus  of 
Mormons,  496. 

Campbell,  Alexander  and  Thomas,  59;  Alex- 
ander's views  of  Rigdon,  61 ;  Rigdon's  jeal- 
ousy of,  62;  challenge  to  Rigdon,  73;  on 
Mormon  Bible,  98. 

Campbellites.     See  Disciples  of  Christ. 

Camps,  during  the  migration,  362,  363;  on 
the  Missouri,  375-378 ;  Scott  and  Eccles, 
499- 

Canada,  Mormon  settlement  in,  614;  anti- 
polygamy  law,  614. 

Cannon,  G.  Q.,  alleged  endowment  oath,  354; 
senator  from  State  of  Deseret,  540 ;  in- 
dicted for  unlawful  cohabitation,  568 ;  Dele- 
gate to  Congress,  571 ;  explanation  of 
Woodruff's  manifesto,  602. 

Cardenas,  expedition  to  Utah,  395. 

Carleton,  A.  B.,  member  Utah  commission, 

597- 

Carlton,  Gen.,  erects  cairn  in  Mountain 
Meadows,  534. 

Carlin,  Gov.,  on  Nauvoo  municipal  court,  246. 

Carlin,  special  constable  in  "  last  Mormon 
war,"  347. 

Carroll  County,  Mo.,  town  started  in,  195; 
measures  to  expel  the  Mormons,  201. 

Carthage,  111.,  petition  to  Gov.  Ford,  298; 
murder  of  the  Smiths,  301-306;  anti-Mor- 
mon convention,  340;  anti-Mormon  meet- 
ing. 346- 

Carthage  Grays,  part  in  the  Smiths'  murder, 

303.  3<H- 
Caswall,  Rev.  H.,  test  of  Smith's  knowledge, 

141 ;  a  Sunday  service  at  Nauvoo,  260. 
Chandler,   Albert,  recollections    of,    48 ;    on 

Smith,  311,  312. 
Chartered  Sisters  of  Charity,  270. 


Chase,  Willard,  account  of  "peek-stone,"  20; 
Smith's  offer  to,  26. 

Chislett,  J.,  description  of  hand-cart  tragedy, 
419. 

Chittenden,  Col.  J.  B.,  in  command  of  anti- 
Mormon  posse,  347. 

Christ,  in  Mormon  Bible,  94-96;  Smith's  de- 
scription of,  116;  men  who  saw,  138  ;  alleged 
polygamist,  288. 

Church,  Mormon,  organization  of,  99-101 ; 
legal  organization,  100;  form  of  govern- 
ment revealed,  100,  101,  119-121;  name, 
108 ;  organized  in  Ohio,  122 ;  early  govern- 
ment of,  131 ;  dissensions  in  Missouri,  188, 
189 ;  property  at  Nauvoo,  292 ;  government 
after  Smith's  death,  314,  315 ;  "  secret 
works,"  316  and  note ;  Young  elected  pres- 
ident, 330 ;  alleged  disloyal  oaths,  354,  355, 
430;  act  of  incorporation,  439;  church-in- 
spired murders,  448-451 ;  disloyalty  of,  431, 
460,  474,  475,  483,  497,  543,  544;  attitude 
toward  the  Southern  states,  544  ;  legislation 
about  church  property,  590;  decision  of  U. 
S.  Supreme  Court,  602 ;  policy  of  to-day, 
610;  fidelity  of  younger  members,  610;  ex- 
tension of  membership,  611 ;  political  in- 
fluence, 611;  present  mission  work,  611, 
612;  membership,  612;  belief  in  national 
control,  617;  checks  on  its  growth,  618. 

Church  of  Christ,  Rigdon's,  318.  See  Hen- 
drickites. 

Church  of  Jesus  Christ  of  Latter-Day  Saints. 
See  Church,  Mormon. 

Church,  Reorganized.  See  Reorganized 
Church. 

Clark,  Rev.  J.  A.,  on  money-digging,  20;  con- 
tradictory accounts  of  the  golden  book,  23; 
Martin  Harris,  35,  36,  38 ;  feeling  of  Smith's 
neighbors,  106. 

Clark,  Gen.  J.  B.,  Gov.  Boggs's  orders  to,  205 ; 
at  Far  West,  address  to  the  Mormons,  209 ; 
Mormon  testimonial  to,  210;  his  summing 
up,  210. 

Clarke,  S.  J.,  on  thieving  by  Mormons,  261. 

Clay  County,  Mo.,  first  Mormon  arrivals,  178 ; 
Army  of  Zion,  180;  manufacture  of  arms, 
182;  welcome  to  Mormons,  185;  responsi- 
bility for  trouble,  185  ;  non-Mormon  meet- 
ing at  Liberty,  and  its  demands,  185,  186. 

Clay,  Henry,  Smith's  correspondence  with, 
250,  251. 

Clayton,  W.,  affidavit  about  the  revelation 
concerning  polygamy,  279. 

Clemison,  John,  testimony  of,  213. 

Cleveland,  Pres.  Grover,  on  polygamy,  588 ; 
proclamation  admitting  Utah  as  a  state, 
608  ;  against  Mormon  immigration,  614. 

Clifford,  Maj.  B.,  Jr.,  in  command  at  Nau- 
voo, 348. 

Cloistered  Saints,  27c. 


622 


INDEX 


Cobb,  J.  T.,  investigations,  28. 

Colesville,  N.Y.,  branch  church  in,  100;  re- 
moval to  Missouri,  169. 

Colfax,  S.,  first  visit  to  Utah,  553;  second 
visit,  556. 

"  Commandments,  Book  of."  See  "  Book 
of  Commandments." 

Commerce,  111.,  origin  of,  223. 

"Commissions"  of  Ohio  converts,  128. 

Conferences,  church,  provided  for,  101. 

Connor,  Col.  P.  E.,  rebuke  of  disloyalty, 
544 ;  march  into  Salt  Lake  City,  545 ;  es- 
tablishes Camp  Douglas,  546;  invitation  to 
miners,  550;   ball  in  his  honor,  602. 

Consecration  of  property,  145,  194. 

Converts,  first  Mormon,  100. 

Cooke,  Lieut.  Col.  P.  St.  G.,  in  Mormon 
"war,"  482;  sufferings  of  his  force,  492; 
government  sale  at  Camp  Floyd,  537. 

Cooperation,  church  doctrine,  559;  Z.  C.  M. 
I.,  SS9,  560. 

Corrill,  John,  reasons  for  accepting  Mormon- 
ism,  124-126;  why  he  abandoned  it,  125; 
ravings  of  converts,  130;  on  Jackson  County 
agreement,  175 ;  locked  up,  177;  on  Mis- 
souri relations,  187;  leaves  the  church,  189; 
on  Danites,  189;  on  Mormon  plundering, 
202;  testimony  against  the  leaders,  212; 
excommunicated,  213  note;  presents  pe- 
tition to  the  legislature,  216. 

Council  Bluffs,  camp  at,  376. 

Council  of  Fifty,  316  note. 

Counterfeiting  alleged,  10,  81,  188,  260,  293, 
302,  331,  344,  360;  of  government  drafts  in 
Salt  Lake  City,  536,  537. 

Cowdery,  Oliver,  assistant  translator,  38,  45; 
biography,  45 ;  ordered  West,  72 ;  testi- 
mony regarding  the  plates,  78 ;  character 
and  later  years,  80-83  '■  authorized  to  bap- 
tize, 99;  ordained,  100;  authorization  to 
reveal,  and  its  results,  101,  102;  first  ser- 
mon, 103;  trip  to  Toronto,  113;  journey  to 
Ohio,  122;  miracle  working,  139;  boun- 
daries of  the  promised  land,  142;  share  of 
Kirtland  property,  printer,  146;  Kirtland 
bank,  148;  charges  against,  154;  charge 
against  Smith,  157;  arrival  in  Missouri, 
162,  163;  printer  in  Missouri,  167 ;  mission 
to  Kirtland,  176;  expelled  from  church, 
188. 

Cowdery,  W.  A.,  on  Kirtland  Bank,  150; 
Smith  on,  156. 

Cowles,  Austin,  affidavit,  291. 

Cradlebaugh,  Judge  John,  action  against 
Parrish  murderers,  450;  on  Aiken  mur- 
ders, 450;  appointed  associate  justice  of 
Utah  Territory, 478  ;  on  Mountain  Meadows 
Massacre,  524  note,  525,  526;  checked  by 
Governor  Cumming,  535. 

Cragin  Anti-polygamy  Bill,  591. 


Craig,  C.  L.,  deputy  surveyor,  report,  473. 

Crickets,  visitation  of,  400. 

Crooked  River,  battle  of,  203. 

Crosby,  J.  R.,  associate  justice  of  Utah  Terri- 
tory, 537,  540. 

Crystal-gazing,  16-18  ;  practise  by  Smith,  18- 
22.    See  "  Peek-stone." 

Cullom,  S.  M.,  anti-polygamy  bill  of  1869, 
591 ;  proposed  law  of  1890,  602. 

Cumming,  Alfred,  appointed  governor  of 
Utah,  478  ;  proclamation  to  Young,  499; 
approached  by  Kane,  503 ;  trip  to  Salt 
Lake  City,  505-507 ;  opinions  of  Young, 
507;  charges  against  Hurt,  507;  scene  in 
the  Tabernacle,  508 ;  on  Mormon  exodus, 
510;  peace  commissioners  on,  512;  on 
Johnston's  advance,  513  note;  proclama- 
tion to  the  people,  516 ;  opposes  military 
posse,  535  ;  order  to  Wells,  536 ;  depart- 
ure from  Utah,  537. 

Cumorah,  land  and  hill  of,  91. 

Currency,  Mormon,  439. 

Curtis,  George  Ticknor,  silence  on  Mormon 
"  war,"  480  note. 

Cyprian  Saints,  270. 

D 

Dame,  Col.  W.  H.,  part  in  Mountain  Mead- 
ows Massacre,  527-532. 

Daniels,  W.  N.,  on  the  Smiths'  murder,  304, 
306,  308. 

Danites,  flight  of  Cowdery  and  Whitmer  from, 
81;  organization,  189-191;  name,  191; 
constitution  and  oath,  191, 192,  334;  Young 
on,  192;  in  politics,  198;  testimony  con- 
cerning, 212,  213;  doings  in  and  around 
Nauvoo,  334. 

Darien  Isthmus,  landing  place  of  Jaredites, 
94. 

Daviess  County,  Mo.,  riot  at  Gallatin,  198 ; 
civil  war  in,  200,  201 ;  military  operations 
in,  205-207;  militia  disbanded,  210;  Gen. 
R.  Wilson's  visit,  210,  211. 

Davison,  Mrs.,  on  Spaulding  manuscript,  52. 

Dawson,  J.  W.,  governor  of  Utah  Territory, 
537 ;  offence  and  punishment,  538,  539. 

Deacons,  duties  of,  101. 

Debts,  revelation  about,  146,  164 ;  Young's 
view  of,  437. 

Denmark,  hostility  to  Mormons,  415  note. 

Deseret  News,  defiance  of  the  government, 
483;  on  Gov.  Dawson,  538;  disloyal 
utterances,  543 ;  on  polygamy,  553 ;  on 
Edmunds  law,  600. 

Deseret,  State  of,  first  constitution  and  boun- 
daries, 429;  memorial  to  Congress,  429; 
proposed  consolidation  with  California, 
430;  protest  against  admission,  430;  charge 
of  treason,  431 ;  ordinances,  438,  439,  440; 
currency    and    alphabet,  439;    university, 


INDEX 


623 


440;  second  constitution  and  application 
for  admission,  477 ;  third  application  for 
admission,    540 ;     meeting   of    legislature, 

547- 

Deveria,  translation  of  papyri,  141. 

Dewitt,  Mo.,  siege  of,  201. 

Dickens,  Charles,  illiteracy  in  England,  230; 
description  of  a  Mormon  vessel,  233  note. 

Dickinson,  Ellen  E.,  researches  regarding 
Spaulding  manuscript,  57. 

Dilke,  Sir  C.  W.,  on  Young,  553  note. 

Disciples  of  Christ,  origin  and  beliefs,  60; 
similarity  of  Mormon  beliefs,  63-65 ;  ex- 
pectation of  a  new  Bible,  65 ;  grove  meet- 
ing, 129. 

"  Divine  Authenticity  of  the  Book  of  Mor- 
mon," 127. 

Divining  rod,  15. 

Divorces,  Young's  fee  for,  577. 

Dixon,  Hepworth,  on  Rigdon,  75. 

"  Doctrine  and  Covenants,  Book  of."  See 
"  Book  "  and  Revelations. 

Doctrines,  Mormon,  107-121. 

Dominguez's  expedition  to  Utah,  395. 

Doniphan,  Gen.  A.  W.,  Smith's  counsel, 
199 ;  militia  force,  201 ;  report  to  Gov. 
Boggs,  201. 

Dotson,  P.  K.,  marshal  of  Utah  Territory, 
478 ;  experience  in  counterfeit  case,  536. 

Doty,  J.  D.,  governor  of  Utah  Territory,  550; 
death,  567. 

Douglas,  Stephen  A.,  on  Nauvoo  Legion, 
237 ;  appointment  for  Bennett,  238 ;  mem- 
ber of  Hancock  County  commission,  337 ; 
commission's  report,  340;  presents  Mor- 
mon memorial,  430;  explanation  of  Salt 
Lake  City  duties,  431 ;  anti-Mormon  speech, 
476. 

Drake,  T.  J.,  associate  justice  Utah  Territory, 
540 ;  defiance  of  Young,  548. 

Drummond,  W.  W.,  associate  justice  of  Utah 
Territory,  466 ;  reputation  in  Illinois,  469; 
ignores  the  probate  courts,  471 ;  quarrel 
with  a  Jew,  and  its  results,  471 ;  return  to 
the  East  and  report,  472. 

Dunklin,  Gov.,  Mormon  statement  to,  175; 
reply  thereto,  176;  compromise  urged, 
182;  message  to  legislature,  184;  reply  to 
Clay  County  Mormons,  186. 

Dunn,  Capt.,  visit  to  Nauvoo,  299. 

Durfee,  A.,  part  in  Parrish  murders,  448,  449. 

Durkee,  C,  governor  of  Utah  Territory,  567. 

Duties  levied  in  Salt  Lake  City,  431 ;  Col. 
Kane  on,  459. 

Dutton,  S.,  indictment  for  murder,  569. 

Dylkes,  "  the  leather  god,"  124. 


Eagle,  Hancock,  issued  at  Nauvoo,  345. 
Eckles,  D.  R„  chief  justice  of  Utah  Territory, 


478 ;  court  at  Camp  Scott,  500 ;  refusal  to 
accompany  Cumming,  506 ;  jury  charge  on 
polygamy,  514. 

Edmunds,  Senator  G.  F.,  anti-polygamy  bill, 
595;  Edmunds-Tucker  amendment.  596; 
bill  regarding  church  property,  602. 

"  Egyptian,  reformed,"  why  used  on  the 
plates,  92. 

Elders,  duties,  101 ;  to  travel,  113;  early  mis- 
sionaries, 228,  229. 

Elders'  Journal,  vii. 

Election  law,  early  Utah,  467. 

Ellicott,  Lord  Bishop,  on  baptism  for  the 
dead,  118. 

Emery,  G.  B.,  governor  of  Utah  Territory, 
573  I  on  polygamy,  594. 

Emmons,  Sylvester,  connection  with  the  Ex- 
positor, 291. 

Endowment  House,  early  ceremonies  at  Nau- 
voo, 278;  ceremony  described,  353,  354; 
the  oath,  354,  355  ;  Gen.  Wells's  refusal  to 
testify  about,  594. 

England,  proselyting  in,  230-233;  charac- 
ter of  converts,  256,  257 ;  converts,  how 
treated,  257  note. 

Enoch,  Order  of,  146. 

Escalante,  expedition  to  Utah,  395. 

Ether,  Book  of,  93. 

Evarts,  W.  M.,  circular  regarding  Mormon 
immigration,  613. 

Evening  and  Morning  Star,  vii ;  office  de- 
stroyed, 174. 

"Everlasting  Gospel,"  contained  in  golden 
plates,  31 ;  Rigdon's  use  of  the  story  of 
Cyril's  plates  and  Joachim's  teachings,  74- 
77 ;  in  Mormon  writings,  j-j. 

Expositor,  Nauvoo,  its  origin  and  suppres- 
sion, 290-296;  incorrect  statements  about, 
291  note. 

F 

Fairchild,  Pres.  J.  H.,  pamphlet  on  second 

Spaulding  Ms.,  55,  56;  on  Rigdon,  68. 
Faith  cures,  139  note. 
Fancher,  Capt.,  leader  of  Mountain  Meadows 

victims,  518. 
Far  West,  Mo.,  founded,  187;  surrender  of, 

208. 
Fayette,  N.  Y.,  Mormon  churchwork  at,  100, 

104. 
Feet  washing,  138. 
Ferguson,   James,  affair  with   Judge   Stiles, 

471. 

Ferris,  B.  G.,  "  Utah  and  the  Mormons," 
viii;  "the  real  (Mormon)  miracle,"  1;  sec- 
retary of  Utah  Territory,  467. 

Fillmore,  capital  of  Utah,  458. 

Fillmore,  Pres.  M.,  appoints  Utah  officers, 
458 ;  deceived  by  Col.  Kane,  459. 

Fitch,  T.,  attorney  for  Mormons,  570. 


624 


INDEX 


Flenniken,  R.  P.,  associate  justice  of  Utah 
Territory,  537,  540. 

Floyd,  Sec.  J.  B.,  order  to  Gen.  Johnston,  534. 

Ford,  T.,  governor  of  Illinois,  warrant  for 
Smith's  arrest,  247 ;  on  alleged  pledge  to 
Mormons,  248  note ;  visit  to  Carthage,  de- 
mand on  Mormons  for  information,  298 ; 
surrender  of  Mormon  leaders  called  for, 
298;  the  murder  of  the  Smiths,  301-304; 
action  after  Smith's  murder,  313 ;  defends 
Mormons,  331;  advises  them  not  to  vote, 
333 ;  advice  to  Young,  335 ;  changed  view 
of  Mormons,  337;  vacillating  course,  345, 
347,  348,  352;  possible  future  of  Mormon- 
ism,  618. 

Forney,  Jacob,  on  Mountain  Meadows  vic- 
tims, 518  note,  525,  526  note. 

Foster,  Dr.  R.  D.,  Smith's  accusations,  290; 
connection  with  Expositor,  291 ;  flight  from 
Nauvoo,  295. 

Freedom  of  worship  in  Utah,  429. 

Frelinghuysen,  F.  T.,  defeat  of  his  bill,  571. 

Fremont,  claim  to  discovery  of  Great  Salt 
Lake,  396. 

French,  Gov.,  address  to  Hancock  County 
citizens,  352. 

Frontier  Guardian,  394. 

Fulgate,  W.,  affidavit  about  Kinderhook 
plates,  87. 

Fuller,  F.,  secretary  and  acting  governor  of 
Utah  Territory,  537-539;  removal  of,  550. 

"  Fur  Company,"  202. 


Galland,  Dr.  Isaac,  land  proposition  to  Mor- 
mons, 222,  224;  antecedents,  234  note; 
plan  for  Nauvoo,  234. 

Gallatin,  Mo.,  riot,  198  ;  night  attack  on,  202. 

Garden  Grove  camp,  366. 

Garfield,  Pres.  J.  A.,  on  polygamy,  595. 

Garfield,  Mrs.  J.  A.,  recollections  of  Rigdon, 

67.  75- 

"  Gazing."  See  "  Crystal "  and  "  Peek- 
stone." 

Gifts  of  tongues  and  miracles,  138. 

Gilbert,  J.  H.,  part  in  printing  Mormon 
Bible,  47-48. 

Gilbert,  Sidney,  storekeeper  in  Missouri,  167  ; 
visit  by  mob,  174 ;  locked  up,  177. 

Gladdenites,  suppression  of,  436. 

Glyphs,  87. 

Godbe,  W.  S„  Young's  order  to,  426; 
Young's  threat,  560;  in  "  New  Movement," 
561 ;  opposition  to  Cullom  Bill,  592. 

Godfrey,  G.  L.,  member  Utah  commission, 
597- 

Gold  Bible.     See  "  Bible,  Mormon." 

Gold  discovery  in  California,  effect  in  Utah, 
405-408. 


Grandin,  E.  B.,  publisher  of  Mormon  Bible, 

47- 

Grant,  G.  D.,  indicted  for  murder,  569. 

Grant,  J.  M.,  anecdote  of  Smith,  310;  on  Salt 
Lake  City  immorality,  442 ;  leader  in  "  The 
Reformation,"  and  inventor  of  blood  atone- 
ment, 444;  on  human  sacrifices,  454;  pam- 
phlet, "  The  Truth  about  the  Mormons," 
461 ;  denial  of  polygamy,  465  note ;  con- 
tradiction of  H.  H.  Bancroft,  466;  defiance 
of  the  government,  474;  indictment  for 
treason,  500 ;  on  discontented  wives,  585. 

Grant,  Pres.  U.  S.,  refusal  to  remove  Judge 
McKean,  570;  special  message  to  Con- 
gress, 570;  signs  Poland  Bill,  571. 

Gray,  Prof.  Asa,  on  Rafinesque,  88. 

Great  Salt  Lake,  discovery  of,  395. 

Great  Salt  Lake  City.     See  Salt  Lake  City. 

Great  Salt  Lake  Valley,  first  view  of  by  the 
Mormons,  390,  391 ;  first  Sunday  service  in, 
396. 

Great  Salt  Lake  Valley  Carrying  Co.,  403. 

Greeley,  Horace,  on  Mormon  persecutions, 
136 ;  Mormon  influence  over,  479 ;  Young's 
statements  to,  576,  579 ;  woman's  place  in 
Utah,  584. 

Gregg,  T,  on  Mormon  persecutions,  220 ;  on 
Smith's  murder,  304. 

Grow,  Galusha  A.,  action  on  Deseret  consti- 
tution, 477. 

Gunnison,  Lieut.  J.  W.,  "The  Mormons," 
viii ;  early  knowledge  of  blood  atonement, 
445  ;  Mormon  view  of  land  titles,  472  note; 
murder  of,  473  note. 

H 

Haight,  I.  C,  part  in  Mountain  Meadows 
Massacre,  526-530. 

Hale,  Emma,  marriage  to  Smith,  24. 

Hale,  Isaac,  character,  23;  objections  to 
Smith,  24;  Smith's  promise,  36;  account 
of  the  translation  of  the  golden  plates,  37. 

Hall  of  the  Seventies,  241. 

Hamblin,  J.,  part  in  Mountain  Meadows  Mas- 
sacre, 525. 

Hancock  County,  111.,  desire  for  settlers,  221; 
panic  following  Smith's  murder,  313 ;  Mor- 
mon vote  in  1844,  333 ;  the  "  burnings," 
336;  Douglas-Hardin  commission,  337; 
Gen.  Hardin's  proclamation,  338 ;  anti- 
Mormon  meetings,  338;  convention  at 
Carthage,  340 ;  anti-Mormon  meetings  re- 
assembled, 345;  contributions  for  poor 
Mormons,  368.    See  Illinois. 

Hand-cart  tragedy,  418-427. 

Hardin,  Gen.  J.  J.,  on  Hancock  County  com- 
mission, 337 ;  proclamation  to  Hancock 
County,  338 ;  negotiations  with  Mormons, 
340,  341- 


INDEX 


625 


Harding,  S.  S.,  trick  on  Stoddard,  105;  gov- 
ernor of  Utah  Territory,  540;  pardon  of 
Morrisites,  542;  censure  of,  by  Mormon 
grand  jury,  542;  first  message  to  legisla- 
ture, 546 ;  retort  of  the  legislators,  547 ; 
reply  to  Mormon  committee,  548 ;  removal, 
how  secured,  550. 

Harmonists,  treatment  of,  135. 

Harney,  Gen.  W.  S.,  in  Mormon  "  war,"  481. 

Harris,  Abigail,  statement,  25. 

Harris,  B.  D.,  territorial  secretary,  458 ;  de- 
parture with  a  federal  appropriation,  464, 

465- 

Harris,  Martin,  personal  and  mental  charac- 
teristics, 35  ;  early  partnership  in  the  Golden 
Bible,  36 ;  assistant  translator,  37 ;  visit  to 
Prof.  Anthon,  38-41 ;  intrusted  with  trans- 
lated pages,  41 ;  description  of  the  work 
of  translating  the  plates,  42;  punishment 
of,  43;  part  in  publication  of  Mormon 
Bible,  47;  Albert  Chandler's  recollection 
of,  48;  Smith's  revelations  about,  43,  49; 
sale  of  farm,  49 ;  warned  about  talkative- 
ness, 79;  exhibition  of  the  plates,  79,  80, 
83;  expulsion  from  the  church,  and  last 
years,  84  ;  share  in  Kirtland  property,  146 ; 
trial  of,  154;  Smith  on,  156;  on  Smith's 
intemperance,  156. 

Harris,  Mrs.  Martin,  proceedings  in  court, 
27;  husband's  abuse  of,  35  ;  Mother  Smith 
on,  36;  theft  of  the  translated  pages,  41; 
separation  from  husband,  47. 

Harris,  W.,  on  Kirtland  Bank,  148. 

Harrison,  Pies.  B.,  proclamation  of  amnesty, 
606. 

Harrison,  E.  L.  T.,  in  "  New  Movement," 
561-563 ;  on  Mormon  oath,  354. 

Harrison,  W.  H.,  Mormon  vote  for,  244. 

Hartnett,  J.,  secretary  of  Utah  Territory,  478. 

Haven,  John,  on  Mrs.  Davison's  letter,  53. 

Hawkins,  T,  convicted  of  polygamy,  592. 

Hawn's  Mill  massacre,  204. 

Hay,  Hon.  John,  account  of  Smith's  murder, 
307  note. 

Hayden's  "  Early  History  of  the  Disciples' 
Church  in  the  Western  Reserve,"  63-66. 

Hayes,  Pres.  R.  B.,  on  polygamy,  595. 

Haywood,  J.  L.,  marshal  of  Utah  Territory, 
458. 

Hazen,  Gen.  W.  B.,  on  Ben  Holiday,  549 
note  ;  on  Mormon  murders,  555. 

Hedlock,  R.,  immigration  scandal,  410. 

Hendrick,  Granville,  founder  of  the  Church 
of  Christ,  183  note. 

Hendrickites,  183  note. 

Hendrix,  D.,  picture  of  Smith,  13,  27;  print- 
ing of  the  Mormon  Bible,  48. 

Hickman,   "  Bill,"   on   Aikin    murders,  451 ; 
indicted  for  murder,  500 ;  petition  for  Mor- 
risites' pardon,  542 ;  a  bet,  545. 
2  s 


Higbee,  F.  M.,  Smith's  quarrel  with,  271 ;  card 

in  Expositor,  292. 
Higbee,  J.  M.,  part  in  Mountain   Meadows 

Massacre,  522  ff. 
High  Council  provided  for,  101 ;  organized, 

120. 
High  Priest,  office  of,  120. 
Hinckle,  G.  M.,  at  Dewitt,  Mo.,  201 ;  order  to, 

203 ;  accused  of  treachery,  208 ;  excommu- 
nicated, 213  note. 
Hoge-Walker  incident,  245-249. 
Holiday,  Ben,  friend  of  the   Mormons,  549 

note. 
Holman,  J.  H.,  Indian  agent,  on  tampering 

with  the  mails,  484. 
Holy  Ghost,  gift  of,  98 ;  form  of,  116. 
"  Holy  Order,"  278. 
Hooper,  W.  H.,  senator  from  State  of  Deseret, 

540;  on  defeat  of  Frelinghuysen  Bill,  571; 

speech  against  Cullom  Bill,  591. 
Host  of  Israel,  192. 
Hotchkiss,  H.  R.,  landowner  at  Commerce, 

111.,  223  ;  demands  on  Smith,  225. 
Howe,  E.  D.,  "  Mormonism  Unveiled,"  viii; 

researches  concerning  Spaulding  Ms.,  53, 

56. 

Hurlbut,  D.  P.,  connection  with  Spaulding 
Ms.,  56-58. 

Hurt,  G.,  Indian  agent,  report  to  the  govern- 
ment, and  escape  from  Utah,  474;  Cum- 
ming's  charges  against,  507. 

Hutchins,  J.,  appeal  to  Pres.  Grant,  179  note. 

Hyde,  Elder  John,  Jr.,  weight  of  golden 
plates,  34  note ;  estimate  of  Rigdon  and  P. 
P.  Pratt,  59 ;  sketch  of,  59 ;  plates  still  un- 
earthed, 92;  New  Testament  quotations 
in  the  Mormon  Bible,  96;  the  Danites, 
191 ;  leaders'  plans  in  Missouri,  195 ;  the 
proselyting  in  England,  232  note;  effect  of 
"sealing"  ordinances,  288;  endowment 
ceremony,  353, 354 ;  victims  of  blood  atone- 
ment, 455  note ;  on  Young,  575. 

Hyde,  Orson,  doctrinal  diagram,  116;  con- 
nection with  Kirtland  bank,  148 ;  letter  to 
Missouri,  155;  mission  to  Missouri,  176; 
leaves  the  church,  189;  substantiates  Marsh, 
214;  mission  to  Jerusalem,  229;  statements 
in  England,  231 ;  Christ  an  alleged  polyga- 
mist,  288  ;  Rigdon's  prosecutor,  316 ;  over- 
tures to  Rigdon,  317  note;  overtures  to 
William  Smith,  335;  editor  of  Frontier 
Guardian,  394;  blood  atonement  fore- 
shadowed, 454;  on  Mormon  world  rule,  617. 


I 


Icarians  at  Nauvoo,  355. 
Idaho,  anti-polygamy  law,  601. 
Illinois,  early  history,  219,  220 ;  why  Mormons 
were  welcomed,  220,  221 ;    Mormon   land 


626 


INDEX 


purchases,  223;  party  divisions,  243;  Mor- 
mons in  politics,  243-249 ;  uprising  of  non- 
Mormons,  297 ;  Gov.  Ford's  course,  298 ; 
militia  called  out,  313  ;  renewed  anti-Mor- 
mon feeling,  331-333  ;  Democratic  repudia- 
tion of  the  Mormons,  335 ;  the  "  burnings," 
336;  Douglas-Hardin  commission,  337; 
negotiations  for  Mormon  evacuation,  338- 
341 ;  Mormon  view  of  the  expulsion,  342 ; 
Brayman's  reports,  343;  evacuation  of 
Nauvoo,  344-351 ;  "  last  Mormon  war," 
347-351.  See  Carthage,  Hancock  County, 
Quincy,  Warsaw. 

Immigration,  foreign,  232,  233;  disappointed 
immigrants,  258;  to  Utah,  410-417;  Hed- 
lock  scandal,  410;  misrepresentations  to 
immigrants,  411-414, 613 ;  petition  to  Queen 
Victoria,  412;  Young's  order  to  Saints  in 
Europe,  413 ;  "  Perpetual  Emigrating  Fund," 
414;  routes  to  Utah,  415-417;  the  hand-cart 
tragedy,  418-427;  bond  exacted,  420  note; 
profits  to  agents,  427 ;  supervision  of,  434 ; 
action  of  government  against,  613. 

Independence,  Mo.,  town  of,  166;  anti-Mor- 
mon county  meeting,  170;  doings  of  the 
"  mob,"  174. 

Indians,  origin  of,  91 ;  Pottawottomies'  and 
Omahas'  welcome  to  Mormons,  375,  376 ; 
encountered  by  Utah  pioneers,  381,  383; 
Omahas'  objection  to  their  Mormon  neigh- 
bors, 393 ;  visit  of  pioneers  to,  397 ;  appro- 
priation of  their  land,  473 ;  incited  to  hos- 
tility by  the  Mormons,  473,  474 ;  part  in 
Mountain  Meadows  Massacre, 521  ff. ;  inter- 
ruption of  the  mails,  539.    See  Lamanites. 

Ingersol,  Peter,  Smith's  confession  to,  24. 

Iowa,  Mormon  land  purchases,  223 ;  evacua- 
tion by  Mormons,  356;  kind  treatment  of 
the  emigrants  from  Nauvoo,  360;  county 
organized  for  Mormons,  393 ;  proposed 
permanent  settlement,  393,  394. 

Irrigation,  first  in  Utah,  391. 

Irving,  Washington,  on  possibilities  of  the  Far 
West,  380;  his  "  Lake  Bonneville,"  396. 

Israel,  lost  tribes  of,  167. 


Jack  Mormons,  185. 

Jackson  County,  Mo.,  population  and  pio- 
neers, 161,  162;  arrival  of  Mormon  mis- 
sionaries, 162 ;  expulsion  of  Mormons  from, 
169-179;  anti-Mormon  manifesto,  170-172; 
grievances  of  anti-Mormons,  172,  173 ;  ulti- 
matum to  Mormons,  173;  Mormon  state- 
ments to  the  governor,  175-177 ;  agreement 
signed,  175;  land  in  Missouri  to  be  held, 
176 ;  Big  Blue  attacked,  177, 178  ;  exchange 
of  shots,  178 ;  departure  of  the  Mormons, 
178,179;  Mormon  legal  proceedings,  179; 


proposition  of  non-Mormons,  182;  its  re- 
jection, 183,  184 ;  hoped-for  return  to  Jack- 
son County,  183  note. 

Jacob,  G.  H.,  pamphlet  on  polygamy,  276. 

Jaques,  Vienna,  in. 

Jaredites,  91,  93. 

Jarvis,  H.  J.,  vengeance  on,  446. 

"Jerks,"  129. 

Jesperson,  Hans,  conviction  of  polygamy, 
599- 

Jews,  ancestors  of  Indians,  53,  90;  looked-for 
return  to  Jerusalem,  64. 

John  the  Baptist,  in  Mormon  Bible,  96;  ap- 
pearance to  Smith,  99. 

Johnson,  Bishop,  part  in  Parrish  murders, 
448. 

Johnson,  J.,  murder  of,  536. 

Johnson,  Lyman  E.,  charges  against,  81 ;  trial 
of,  154 ;  expelled,  188. 

Johnson,  Nephi,  testimony  about  Mountain 
Meadows  Massacre,  532. 

Johnston,  Albert  Sidney,  federal  commander 
in  the  Mormon  "  war,"  482  ;  march  to  Utah, 
491;  on  Mormon  purpose,  494;  refusal  of 
Young's  offer  of  provisions,  503  note; 
policy  stated,  506;  defends  Hurt,  507;  re- 
ply to  Gov.  Cumming,  513  note;  Floyd's 
order  to,  535. 

"  Josephites."      See  Reorganized  Church. 

Journal  of  Discourses,  viii. 

K 

Kane,  Col.  T.  L.,  on  defiling  of  the  Nauvoo 
Temple,  355 ;  ingenuity  of  the  Mormon 
emigrants,  365;  letter  to  Jesse  C.  Little, 
372;  trip  to  Nauvoo  and  the  Missouri 
camps,  374;  reported  Mormon  baptism, 
374;  character  as  a  Mormon  agent,  374; 
mortality  in  the  Missouri  camps,  377;  de- 
scription of  Utah  crickets,  400 ;  part  in 
appointment  of  Young  as  governor  of  Utah, 
459 ;  work  in  New  York,  479 ;  offer  to  me- 
diate, letters  from  Buchanan,  501;  inter- 
views with  Mormon  leaders  in  Utah,  502 ; 
at  Camp  Scott,  503  ;  telegram  to  Washing- 
ton, 515  note. 

Kanesville,  393,  394. 

Kearney,  Gen.  S.  F.,  proposition  about  the 
Battalion,  371. 

Keeley,  James,  professor  at  Nauvoo,  242. 

Kelsey,  E.  B.,  in  "  New  Movement,"  561,  565. 

Kendall,  postmaster  general,  Brannan's  story 
about,  388. 

Kennedy,  J.  H.,  on  Rigdon,  123  note. 

Kimball,  Heber  C,  mission  to  England,  229; 
statements  in  England,  231 ;  against  Rig- 
don, 317;  Young's  counsellor,  330;  suffer- 
ings of  family  during  the  migration,  364; 
leads  a  party  across  the  plains,  394 ;   pic- 


INDEX 


627 


tures  of  famine  in  Utah,  408 ;  chief  justice 
State  of  Deseret,  429 ;  on  Young's  author- 
ity,  437,  454 ;  warnings  to  the  flock,  444, 
445,  497;  on  Young's  trusteeship,  473; 
defiance  of  the  federal  government,  497 ; 
indicted  for  treason,  500;  on  woman's  duty, 
585 ;  on  a  fair  division  of  female  converts, 
586. 

Kimball,  Hiram,  Smith's  revelation  about, 
114. 

Kimball,  W.  H.,  indictment  for  murder,  569. 

Kinderhook  plates,  history  of,  86. 

King,  Judge  A.  A.,  hearings  before,  210-215. 

Kinney,  John  F.,  chief  justice  of  Utah  Terri- 
tory, 467 ;  his  store  and  boarding-house, 
469 ;  reappointment,  537 ;  against  Morris- 
ites,  541,  542;  removed,  550. 

Kirtland,  O.,  visitors  to,  123  ;  vagaries  of  con- 
verts, 128,  130;  changed  plans  for  church 
headquarters,  142 ;  business  enterprises 
(bank,  etc.),  143-151 ;  laying  out  the  town, 
144;  Temple,  145,  160;  bank,  148-152; 
fight  at  a  church  service,  158  ;  final  struggle 
and  flight  of  Smith  and  Rigdon,  159,  160; 
Kirtland  bank-bills  in  Utah,  439. 

Klingensmith,  part  in  Mountain  Meadows 
Massacre,  526-530. 

Knight,  J.,  Sr.,  conversion  of,  100. 

Knight,  S.,  part  in  Mountain  Meadows  Mas- 
sacre, 522  ff. 


La  Crosse,  Wis.,  Stake  at,  324. 

Lahontan's  claims  to  discovery,  395. 

Laman,  94. 

Lamanites,  53 ;  Cowdery's  mission  to,  85, 
102,  122,  163;  wars  of,  91-94.  See  Ind- 
ians. 

Land,  Mormon  views  of,  164,  396,  397,  398 
note,  438,  472-474. 

Land  speculation,  144;  in  Kirtland,  144,  159, 
160. 

Lang,  Andrew,  on  crystal-gazing,  17,  18. 

Lapham,  Fayette,  interview  with  Joseph 
Smith,  Sr.,  19,  29. 

Laramie,  Fort,  Utah  pioneers  at,  383. 

Latter-Day  Saints,  why  so  called,  108. 

Law,  William,  a  counsellor,  236;  denial  of  a 
revelation,  248;  connection  with  the  church, 
290;  knowledge  of  polygamy,  291 ;  Smith's 
charges  against,  293 ;  flight  from  Nauvoo, 

295- 
Law,  Wilson,   offices,  290;    connection  with 
the  Expositor,  291-295 ;  flight  from  Nauvoo, 

295- 
Lawrence,  H.  W.,  Young's  threat  about,  560 ; 

in  "  New  Movement,"  561. 
Lee,   John   D.,   conversion  to  Mormonism, 

126;  on   Anthon's  statement,  140;  Danite 


signs,  192;  on  Missouri  plundering,  202, 
211;  a  missionary,  228;  on  Smith's  presi- 
dential candidacy,  254 ;  his  plural  wives, 
276,277;  adoption  by  Young,  289;  Mor- 
mon faith  in  Smith,  309  ;  on  "  secret  works," 
316  note;  on  successorship  to  Smith,  322; 
on  cause  of  Mormon  troubles,  361 ;  on  es- 
capes from  Utah,  450  note ;  illustration  of 
blood  atonement,  456;  part  in  Mountain 
Meadows  Massacre,  520-531 ;  trial  and 
execution,  531,  532. 

Legion,  Nauvoo,  organization  of,  237;  an 
army  officer  on,  239;  appearance  of,  239; 
surrender  of  arms,  299 ;  as  sheriff's  posse, 
336;  mobilization  of  in  the  "war"  in  Utah, 
484 ;  in  Camp  Weber,  498 ;  suppression  of 
by  Governor  Shaffer,  567. 

Lewis,  Catherine,  concerning  plural  wives, 
275  note. 

Lewis,  Hiel  and  Joseph,  on  Smith's  first  ac- 
count of  the  golden  plates,  28. 

Liberty,  Mo.,  Mormon  prisoners  in,  212. 

Lincoln,  Abraham,  name  scratched  by  Mor- 
mons, 244;  vote  for  Nauvoo  charter,  244; 
signs  anti-polygamy  bill,  540;  Young  and 
G.  A.  Smith  on,  543;  petition  to,  548; 
policy  toward  Mormons,  550. 

Little,  Jesse  C,  proposition  to  federal  author- 
ities, 372. 

Loba,  F.,  story  of  escape  from  Utah,  451. 

Lucas,  Gen.  S.  D.,  march  to  Far  West,  207; 
terms  of  surrender,  208. 

Lucas,  governor  of  Iowa,  on  Mormons,  221. 

Lyman,  Amasa  W.,  against  Rigdon,  317; 
leader  of  party  across  the  plains,  394; 
defiance  of  federal  government,  497;  in 
"  New  Movement,"  561. 

Lynch,  J.,  affidavit  about  Mountain  Mead- 
ows Massacre,  524. 

Lyon's  revelation,  274. 

M 

Mack,  Solomon,  8. 

Mails,  alleged  tampering  with,  440,  474,  480. 

Mansion  House,  Nauvoo,  241. 

"  Manuscript  Found,"  history  of,  and  connec- 
tion with  the  Mormon  Bible,  50-58. 

McCullough,  Maj.  Ben.  See  Peace  Com- 
mission. 

McDonald  of  Indiana,  on  Babbitt's  admis- 
sion, 431. 

McDougal,  T.  A.,  on  Hancock  County  com- 
mission, 337. 

McFarland,  D.,  part  in  Mountain  Meadows 
Massacre,  523. 

McKean,  J.  B.,  chief  justice  of  Utah  Territory, 
567;  overruled  by  Supreme  Court,  570; 
Ann  Eliza's  divorce  suit,  573 ;  Hawkins's 
sentence,  592. 


628 


INDEX 


McKinstry,  Mrs.,  affidavit  of,  52. 
McLean,  H.  H.,  kills  P.  P.  Pratt,  519. 
McLellin,  W.   E.,   trial    of,   154;    revelation 

about,  274. 
McMurdy,  S.,  part   in    Mountain    Meadows 

Massacre,  522  ff. 
McMurrin,  shooting  of,  599. 
Mann,  S.  A.,  secretary  of  Utah  Territory,  567. 
Marcy,  Capt.  R.  B.,  John  Taylor's  letter  to, 

496;  expedition  to  New  Mexico,  499. 
Markham,  S.,  affidavit,  271 ;  captain  of  Utah 

pioneers,  381. 
Marks,  W.,  defends   Rigdon,  317;    alliance 

with  Emma,  323. 
Marriage,  rule  in  "  Book  of  Commandments," 

157- 

Marsh,  T.  B.,  on   church   dissensions,   188; 

leaves  the  church,  189;    affidavit  of,  213; 

excommunicated,  213  note. 

Marshals,  conflict  of  authority,  470,  547,  568 ; 

Sup.  Court  decision,  569;  Poland  Bill,  572. 

Matlack,  W.  E.,  editor  of  Hancock  Eagle, 

345- 
Medill,  Joseph,  visit  to  Utah,  556. 
Melchisedec,  priesthood  of,  99,  120. 
Messenger  and  Advocate,  viii. 
Mexico,  Mormon  settlements  in,  614. 
Migration  to  Utah,  destination  not  foreseen, 
357.  358.  385~387  ;  explanation  to  the  Mor- 
mon  people,  358;    preparations  for,  359; 
first  departures  from  Nauvoo,  362  ;  march 
to  the  Missouri,  363-370;  suffering  of  the 
expelled    remnant,   367-369;    the    line    of 
march,  369;    in   camps  on   the   Missouri, 
375-378  ;   mortality  in  the  camps,  376,  377 ; 
trip  of  the  pioneers,  380-391 ;  the  following 
companies,  392-394. 
Miles,  John,  tried  for  polygamy,  594. 
Millennial  Star,  vii ;   predicts  destruction  of 

the  Union,  543. 
Millennium,  Disciples'  and  Mormons'  belief, 

63;   Mormon  expectation  of,  108. 
Milman,  on  inconsistency,  273  note. 
Mining,  first  discovery  of  ore  in  Utah,  550; 
"  Reformers'  "  views,  564 ;  Emma  mine,  570. 
Miracles,  modern,  5,  6;  first  Mormon,  103; 
in  Ohio  and  England,  339  ;  denial  by  Smith, 
139  note ;  use  of,  in  England,  231. 
Missions,  compulsory  character,  437,  438;  of 

to-day,  611. 
Missouri,  at  time  of  Mormon  arrival,  161, 
162;  Smith's  first  visits,  167,  168;  Jackson 
County  troubles,  168-184;  politics,  198; 
pillaging  and  burning,  202 ;  fate  of  Mormon 
persecutors,  204 ;  alleged  death  sentence  of 
Smith  and  others,  208  ;  Mormon  object  in, 
210;  Mormon  petition  to  legislature,  216; 
departure  from  the  state,  217 ;  pecuniary 
losses  in,  217.  See  Clay,  Daviess,  and 
Jackson  counties,  Independence. 


Moffat,  David,  catechism,  116. 

Mohammed  and  Smith,  109  note. 

Money-digging,  15,  16,  18-22. 

Morgan,  James  D.,  in  Hancock  County,  HI., 
343- 

Mormon  (name),  origin  of,  107,  108. 

Mormon  (persons),  91. 

Mormon  (place),  94. 

Mormon  Bible.     See  Bible. 

"  Mormon,  Book  of."     See  Bible. 

Mormon,  Book  of  (subdivision  of  Bible),  why 
written,  91. 

Mormon  church.     See  Church. 

Mormon  Hill,  31. 

Mormonism  of  to-day,  609-618. 

Moroni,  31,  92. 

Morrill,  J.  S.,  anti-polygamy  bill,  590. 

Morris,  Joseph,  leader  of  Morrisites,  540, 
541- 

Morrisites,  origin  and  punishment,  540,  541 ; 
pardon  of,  542. 

Morton,  Senator  O.  P.,  influence,  570. 

Mosheim's  "  Ecclesiastical  History,"  Rig- 
don's  knowledge  of,  75. 

Mountain  Meadows  Massacre,  517-534. 

Mt.  Pisgah,  camp  at,  366 ;  privations  at,  369, 
370. 

Mummies  at  Kirtland,  139-141,  151. 

Murders,  church-inspired,  448-451 ;  number 
in  Utah,  453  note;  Brassfield,  Robinson, 
and  others,  554,  555  ;  apprehension  in  Salt 
Lake  City,  558. 

Murray,  E.  H.,  governor  of  Utah  Territory, 
573- 

N 

Nauvoo  House,  Bible  Ms.  in  corner-stone,  44 ; 
revelation  about,  235 ;  description  and  use, 
241. 

Nauvoo,  Mormon  settlement,  223-225 ;  origin 
of  name,  225;  unhealthfulness,  225,  226; 
growth  in  population,  227;  foreign  immi- 
gration, 228;  Galland's  plan  for,  234;  reve- 
lation about,  235  ;  provisions  of  city  charter, 

236,  237  ;  Legion  authorized,  237  ;  Mansion 
House,  241;  Hall  of  Seventies,  241;  Uni- 
versity, 242;    powers  of  Municipal  Court, 

237,  247;  ordinances  of  City  Council,  250; 
social  conditions,  256-261 ;  land  sales,  257, 
258 ;  charges  of  thieving  examined,  258- 
261;  polygamy  practised,  274-280;  renewed 
charges  of  stealing,  330;  hard  times  in,  in 
l845'  332;  *ne  Neighbor's  comments  on 
the  repeal  of  the  charter,  333;  evacuation 
of  the  city  by  the  Mormons,  344-351 ;  "  last 
Mormon  war,"  347-351 ;  indictments  for 
counterfeiting,  344;  arrival  of  new  citizens, 
344;  Hancock  Eagle  issued,  345  ;  terms  of 
final  surrender,  349 ;  after  the  evacuation, 
35°.  356;  completion  and  description  of  the 


INDEX 


629 


Temple,  353-356 ;  preparations  for  the  move 

to  the  Far  West,  359;  real  estate  sales,  361. 
Neighbor,  Nauvoo,  253. 
Nephi,  Heaven's  messenger,  31 ;  substitution 

of  translation  from,  45;    plates   of,  91;    a 

leader,  94. 
Nephites,  53,  91-94. 
Nevada,  settlement  of,  472  note. 
New  Citizens  at  Nauvoo,  345 ;  position  during 

"  last  Mormon  war,"  346. 
Newell,  Grandison,  alleged  plot  against,  154; 

rumored  warrant  for  Mormon  leaders,  159. 
New  Jerusalem,  promise  of,  163. 
"  New  Movement,"  561-566. 
New  York  Mormons,  vote  to  move  west  of 

the  Rockies,  359 ;  Brannan's  emigrants  to 

California,  387,  388. 

O 

Oaths,  Danite,  192,  334 ;  Endowment  House, 
354.  355.  595 :  against  the  government,  430. 

Oglesby,  Gov.  R.  J.,  visit  to  Utah,  556. 

Ohio,  Mormon  move  to,  revealed,  106;  arri- 
val of  missionaries,  122;  crowds  to  hear 
new  doctrines,  123.     See  Kirtland. 

Oneida  Community,  treatment  of,  135. 

"  Oneness,"  organization,  332. 


Pack,  John,  first  major  of  Utah  pioneers,  381. 
Paddock,  A.  S.,  member  Utah  Commission, 

597- 
Page,  Hiram,  testimony  regarding  the  plates, 

79;  occupation,  85;    use  of  "  peek-stone," 

and  rebuke  therefor,  85. 
Page,  John  E.,  with  Strang,  325. 
Papyri,  the  Kirtland,  140. 
Parish,  Warren,  Smith    on,    155;    attack   on 

William    Smith,     158;     responsibility    for 

bank  failure,  158. 
Parker,  Major,  in  Nauvoo,  347,  348. 
Parks,  Gen.,  report  to  Gen.  Atchison,  201. 
Parrish  murders,  448-450. 
Partridge,  Edward,  first  bishop,  120;  in  Mis- 
souri, 167;  tarred,  174;  opposition  to  new 

settlement,  222. 
Patriarch,  Joseph,  Sr.,  the  first,  121 ;  price  of 

blessings,  121;   later  patriarchs,  121,  398. 
Patterson,  Pittsburg  printer,  51-53. 
Patterson,   Robert,  pamphlet   on   Spaulding 

Ms.,  55,  67. 
Patton,  D.  W.   (Capt.  Fear  Not),  killed  at 

Crooked  River,  203. 
Peace  Commission,  on  Mormon  exodus,  509 ; 

appointment  of,  and  instructions,  511;  on 

Gov.    Cumming,   512;    consultations   with 

Young,  512,  513. 
"  Peek-stone,"  Smith's,  20-22;  Miss  Chase's, 


34;  Hiram  Page's,  85;  use  in  revelations, 

111;  female  rival  in  Ohio,  154. 
Peep  o'  Day,  562. 
Penrose,  C.  W.,  on  blood   atonement,  455 

note  ;  author  of  "  Zion,"  513. 
People's  Party,  on  test  oath,  598 ;  dissolution 

of,  606. 
Perpetual  Emigrating  Fund,  414  note;    rate 

to  hand-cart  emigrants,  419. 
Peterson,  Z.,  ordered  West,  72;  punishment, 

122;  arrival  in  Missouri,  162,  163. 
Pettigrew,  J.  R.,  member  Utah  commission, 

597- 

Phelps,  W.  W.,  expectation  of  millennium, 
109  note ;  printer  in  Missouri,  biography, 
167 ;  mission  to  Gov.  Dunklin,  176 ;  on 
Clay  County  treatment,  185  ;  deposed  on 
charges,  188 ;  testimony  against  Mormon 
leaders,  213;  Smith  on,  215;  on  origin  of 
polygamy,  272  note;  at  Expositor  trial, 
294 ;  statement  to  the  church,  314 ;  against 
Rigdon  at  Nauvoo,  315,  317. 

Pierce,  Pres.  F.,  nominations  for  governor 
of  Utah  Territory,  468,469;  bad  judicial 
appointments,  469. 

Pioneers  to  Utah,  origin  of,  379;  trip  across 
the  plains,  380-391 ;  return  trip,  392. 

Plates,  the  golden,  witnesses  to,  78-86;  made 
by  Mormon,  91,  92;  origin  of,  94;  plates 
still  buried,  92  note.     See  Bible. 

Poland  Bill,  571. 

Polk,  Pres.  J.  K.,  Mormon  address  to,  357. 

Polyandry,  288  note. 

Polygamy,  charge  and  denial  of,  in  Ohio, 
157;  first  suggested  to  Smith,  158;  origin 
of  the  idea,  272-274 ;  Mormon  Bible  for- 
bids, 272,  273 ;  early  revelations  against, 
273;  practice  in  Nauvoo,  274-280;  ordered 
by  an  angel,  275;  Lee  on,  276;  writing  of 
the  revelation,  279;  Young  on  original 
copy,  280;  denials  and  their  value,  280 
note;  Rigdon's  innocence  in  the  matter, 
280,  281;  public  announcement,  282;  text 
of  revelation,  282-285;  Orson  Pratt  on, 
285,  286;  obligatory  character,  286,  553, 
597,  615 ;  effect  in  England,  286,  287 ; 
"sealing,"  287,  288;  Christ  an  alleged 
polygamist,  288;  denial  of  the  revelation 
at  Nauvoo,  293,  294;  view  of,  in  church 
incorporation  act,  440;  denial  of,  by  Col. 
Kane,  460 ;  Judge  Brocchus's  criticism  of, 
462;  denial  of,  by  J.  M.  Grant,  465  note; 
Judge  Eckles's  charge  to  the  grand  jury, 
514;  Lincoln  signs  anti-polygamy  bill, 540; 
Gov.  Harding  on,  546;  Colfax's  proposi- 
tion to  Young,  552;  Deseret  News'  view, 
553 ;  social  aspects  of,  582-589 ;  Greeley  on 
woman's  place  in  Utah,  584;  the  division 
of  female  converts,  585;  a  first  wife's  view, 
586;    Pres.  Cleveland's  view  of,  588;  leg- 


630 


INDEX 


islation  concerning,  590-605 ;  appeal  of 
women  against,  594 ;  defiance  of  the  Ed- 
munds law,  597-600;  proposed  law  of 
1890,  602;  Woodruff's  manifesto,  602-609; 
Roberts  case,  604;  Utah  law  of  1901,  605; 
Mormon  fear  of  a  constitutional  amend- 
ment, 605,  616;  anxiety  of  the  church  to 
return  to  polygamy,  615;  modern  Mormon 
women's  view  of,  615. 

Poor,  support  of  the,  146. 

Porter,  Fitz  John,  in  Mormon  "war,"  482. 

Post-offices  of  the  Plains,  380. 

Potter,  G.,  part  in  Parrish  murders,  448,  449. 

Powell,  L.  W.     See  Peace  Commission. 

Pratt,  Orson,  on  Anthon's  statement,  40;  on 
Rafinesque's  glyphs,  87;  on  Mormon  Bible, 
89;  sketch  of,  89;  on  Roman  Catholic 
church,  99  note ;  sermon  on  future  posses- 
sion of  the  earth,  no;  rebuke  by  Young, 
117;  mission  to  England,  229;  professor 
at  Nauvoo,  242;  Smith's  affair  with  Mrs. 
Pratt,  270;  effect  of  spiritual  wife  doctrine, 
270  note  ;  discourse  announcing  polygamy, 
285,  286;  on  completion  of  Nauvoo  Temple, 
353 1  protest  against  the  banishment  of 
Mormons,  358 ;  camp  experience  on  the 
trip  to  the  Missouri,  364;  observations 
during  the  pioneer  trip,  382;  call  for  New 
York  emigrants  to  California,  387  ;  advance 
march  to  Great  Salt  Lake  Valley,  389-391 ; 
on  proposed  settlement  in  Iowa,  393;  ap- 
peal for  mechanics,  403 ;  in  charge  of 
English  emigration,  414;  on  first  Utah 
government,  429 ;  charges  against  the  gov- 
ernment, 475 ;  requests  federal  officers  to 
resign,  548. 

Pratt,  P.  P.,  stories  about  the  golden  plates, 
26,  36;  on  Anthon's  statement,  40;  service 
to  the  church,  59;  acquaintance  with  Rig- 
don,  71 ;  visit  to  Smith,  71 ;  mission  to  Ohio, 
72;  Smith's  revealing,  in;  trial  of,  154; 
rebellious  spirit,  155;  censure  of  Smith  and 
Rigdon,  157;  arrival  in  Missouri,  162,  163; 
on  Jackson  County  "mob,"  172;  asks  for 
a  warrant,  178 ;  on  tithing,  194 ;  surrender 
at  Far  West,  208 ;  commitment,  214;  mis- 
sion to  England,  229;  on  fate  of  Smith's 
murderers,  308 ;  sustains  Young  at  Nauvoo, 
315,  317;  Emma's  church  council,  323;  on 
migration  to  the  Far  West,  358  ;  departure 
from  Nauvoo,  362  note;  selects  site  for 
camp  at  Mt.  Pisgah,  366 ;  conveyer  of  Bat- 
talion fund,  372;  life  in  Winter  Quarters, 
377;  on  Brannan,  387;  leader  of  the  "  first 
migration,"  392;  early  view  of  Salt  Lake 
City,  398  ;  privations  in  Salt  Lake  City,  399  ; 
glowing  report  to  England,  401 ;  his  death, 

519. 

Preface  to  first  edition  Mormon  Bible,  45. 
Prentiss,  B.  M.,  in  Hancock  County,  111.,  343. 


Presidency,  First.establishment  of,  120;  reason 

for,  155. 
Presidential  candidacy,  Smith's,  250-255. 
Priests,  duties  of,  101. 

Prisoners,  Mormon,  in  Missouri,  211,  212,  215. 
Prophet,  Smith's  authorization  as,  103. 
Prophet,  in  New  York,  334 ;  Brannan  editor, 

387- 
Proselyting,  origin  of,  131 ;  progress  in  the 
United  States,  228,  229;  in  England,  229- 
233;   Young's  plan,  329;    to-day's  system, 
611,  612. 


Quails,  visitation  of,  368. 

Quincy,  111.,  arrival  of  Smith,  216;  welcome 
to  Mormons,  221;  anti-Mormon  meeting, 
338;  reply  to  Mormons,  339;  peace  meet- 
ing. 349- 

Quincy,  Josiah,  visit  to  Nauvoo,  140  note; 
Smith's  view  of  himself  as  a  prophet,  266; 
on  Smith's  future  influence,  618. 

Quorums,  120. 

R 

Rafinesque's  glyphs,  87. 

Ramsey,  A.,  member   of  Utah   commission, 

597- 
Rawlins,  Sec.  J.  A.,  view  of  Utah  situation, 

567- 

Rawlins,  J.  L.,  enabling  act,  607. 

Reed,  Amos,  secretary  of  Utah  Territory,  550. 

"Reformation,  The"  (1856),  its  beginning, 
aims,  and  doings,  441-447. 

"  Reformation,  The."    See  "  New  Movement." 

Reid,  H.  P.,  counsel  for  Smith,  299. 

Reid,  L.  H.,  chief  justice  of  Utah  Territory, 
467. 

Remick,  Smith's  dealings  with,  264. 

Reorganized  Church,  title  to  Kirtland  Temple 
and  legal  status,  160;  claim  to  Temple  lot 
at  Independence,  Mo.,  183^  note;  organiza- 
tion and  membership,  223,  224;  in  Utah, 
562-564. 

Republican  National  Convention  of  1856,  on 
polygamy,  476. 

Resurrection,  Smith's  view,  116. 

Return,  44. 

Revelations,  Joseph  Smith,  Jr.'s,  about  the 
golden  plates,  30-32 ;  plates  to  be  secret, 
38;  Harris's  wickedness,  43;  directing  Har- 
ris, 49 ;  new  translation  of  Scriptures  or- 
dered, 68-71;  to  P.  P.  Pratt,  et  at.,  71; 
concerning  exhibition  of  the  plates,  79; 
concerning  Cowdery's  honesty,  80 ;  Har- 
ris's talkativeness,  79  ;  form  of  church  gov- 
ernment, 100,  101 ;  Whitmer  on,  101 ;  about 
other  revealers,  101 ;  authorization  to  Cow- 
dery  and  its  results,  101,  102;  Smith  to  be 
the  leader  and  prophet,  102;  requiring  re- 


INDEX 


631 


baptism,  103;  for  Smith's  support,  104; 
Rigdon's  authority,  106;  move  to  Ohio 
ordered,  106 ;  speedy  millennium,  109 ;  how 
revelations  were  received  by  Smith,  in; 
about  Vienna  Jaques,  in;  publication  of 
revelations,  112,  113;  failures  of,  113,  114; 
number  of,  by  years,  114;  Young's  refusal 
to  reveal,  115;  imitators  of  Smith,  34,  85, 
115,  154;  about  First  Presidency  and  other 
offices,  120;  Stakes,  120;  elders  to  travel, 
131;  Smith's  authority  and  support,  132; 
Rigdon's  support,  132;  rebuke  of  Rigdon, 
133 ;  westward  move  and  New  Jerusalem, 
142;  consecration  of  property,  145;  about 
debts,  146,  164;  Salem,  Mass.,  trip,  147; 
New  Jerusalem  and  Zion  promised,  163; 
Saints'  right  to  Zion,  164,  165 ;  site  of  Zion, 
166;  Zion  not  to  be  moved,  179;  army  of 
Zion,  promises  not  fulfilled,  180,  181 ;  per- 
mitting murder,  190;  tithing,  193,  194; 
Adam-ondi-Ahman,  195 ;  excusing  aban- 
donment of  Zion,  224 ;  about  Nauvoo,  235, 
236;  check  on  Smith's  revelations,  266; 
against  polygamy,  273;  about  McLellin, 
274 ;  the  revelation  of  polygamy,  kept  secret, 
276;  promulgation  of  the  revelation  in 
Utah,  285;  effect  in  England,  286;  about 
Brigham  Young,  329;  Brigham  Young  on, 
329,  435 ;  Young's  only  revelation,  379 ;  by 
Joseph  Morris,  540. 
Reynolds,  George,  conviction   of  polygamy, 

592. 

Rich,  C.  C,  one  of  the  Twelve,  330. 

Richards,  F.  D.,  one  of  the  Twelve,  330;  suf- 
ferings of  family  during  the  migration, 
364;  passes  hand-cart  emigrants,  421 ;  de- 
nounced by  Young,  426. 

Richards,  Willard,  plan  for  flight  from  Nau- 
voo, 299;  account  of  the  Smiths'  murder, 
305 ;  appeal  for  peace,  313 ;  statement  to 
the  church,  314;  Young's  counsellor,  330; 
reply  to  Hancock  County  commission,  340 ; 
leader  of  party  across  the  plains,  394. 

Richmond,  Mo.,  Mormon  prison,  211. 

Rigdon,  Nancy,  testimony  for  Mormons, 
214;  Smith's  attempt  with,  270. 

Rigdon,  Sidney,  Smith's  early  acquaintance 
with,  16,  22,  23,  43,  67 ;  Mrs.  Davison  on, 
52;  denial  by,  53;  John  Hyde,  Jr.,  on, 
59;  sketch  of  in  Smith's  autobiography, 
59;  early  church  connections,  59-61; 
changed  religious  views,  60;  religious 
temperament,  61 ;  jealousy  of  the  Camp- 
bells, 63 ;  loreknowledge  of  the  Mormon 
Bible,  65,  66;  knowledge  of  Spaulding's 
Ms.,  66,  67 ;  share  in  translation  of 
Scriptures,  68-71 ;  conversion  to  Mormon 
faith,  71-73;  use  and  knowledge  of  the 
"  Everlasting  Gospel,"  74-77 ;  his  learning, 
75 ;  arraignment  of  Cowdery,  et  a/.,  81,  82; 


Prof.  Whitsitt's  view,  92  note;  originator 
of  church  government,  101 ;  visit  to  Pal- 
myra, 103 ;  authority  revealed,  106  ;  in  First 
Presidency,  120;  on  Cowdery,  122;  effect 
of  his  conversion,  123;  his  plan,  123  note; 
revelation  about  his  support,  132;  rebuked 
by  Smith,  132;  tarred  and  feathered,  133- 
135;  tried  and  deprived  of  license,  136; 
seeing  the  Lord,  138;  miracle  working, 
139;  share  of  Kirtland  property,  146-152; 
Smith's  contempt  for,  153 ;  last  appearance 
at  Kirtland,  159;  charge  of  cowardice, 
168;  welcome  at  Far  West,  187;  "salt 
sermon,"  196;  with  volunteers  for  Daviess 
County,  198 ;  studies  law,  200  note ;  sur- 
rendered at  Far  West,  208  ;  a  prisoner,  211, 
212;  trial  of,  212-215;  appeal  to  the  Amer- 
ican people,  214;  escape  from  prison,  215; 
letters  of  introduction,  221;  opposes  land 
purchase,  222;  signs  Hotchkiss's  note,  224; 
one  of  Smith's  counsellors,  236;  order 
concerning  Legion,  237;  on  Bennett,  238; 
attorney-at-law  and  postmaster,  238 ;  pro- 
fessor at  Nauvoo,  242 ;  secures  opinion  for 
Smith,  246 ;  named  for  Vice  President,  253 ; 
Smith's  complaints  against,  in  Nauvoo,  263 ; 
innocence  about  polygamy,  272,  273,  278, 
280,  281;  course  after  Smith's  death,  314, 
315 ;  trial  and  expulsion  from  the  church, 
316-318 ;  his  Church  of  Christ  in  Pennsyl- 
vania, 318,  319;  remarkable  visions  there, 
318,  319;  last  days  in  Friendship,  N.Y., 
319;  alleged  mental  unsoundness,  318; 
refusal  to  rejoin  the  Mormons,  319,  320 
note;  interesting  letter  from,  320. 

Roberts,  B.  H.,  refused  seat  in  Congress,  604. 

Robinson,  Ebenezer,  sketch  of,  44;  second 
copy  of  the  Mormon  Bible,  44;  on  Salem 
trip,  148 ;  on  Danites,  190 ;  on  tithing,  193  ; 
on  Rigdon's  "  salt  sermon,"  197 ;  prisoner 
in  Missouri,  211;  taught  polygamy,  277, 
278. 

Robinson,  G.  W.,  surrender  of  at,  Far  West, 
208;  on  Nancy  Rigdon  scandal,  271. 

Robinson,  J.  King,  murder  of,  554. 

Rockwell,  Porter  P.,  alleged  assassination  of 
Gov.  Boggs,  245 ;  acquittal,  250 ;  Lieut. 
Worrell's  murder,  336;  part  in  Aikin  mur- 
ders, 451;  warns  Young  of  the  approach 
of  troops,  483;  indicted  for  treason,  500; 
at  peace  conference,  513;  shoots  one  of 
Gov.  Dawson's  assailants,  539 ;  indicted  for 
murder,  567. 

Roman  Catholic  church,  Mormon  view  of, 
99  note. 

Rosa,  Dr.  Storm,  on  Rigdon,  66. 

Rowe,  H.,  on  spiritual  wife  doctrine,  287. 

Ruddock,  S.  A.,  claim  to  discovery,  395. 

Rudolph,  Z.,  recollections  of  Rigdon,  67. 

Ruskin's  religious  views,  127. 


632 


INDEX 


Ryder,  Symonds,  conversion,  123,   126;   on 

tarring  of  Smith,  134. 
Ryland,  Judge,  advice  to  Mormons,  178, 182. 


Salem,  Mass.,  trip,  147. 

Salt  Lake  City,  laid  out,  397;  name  selected, 
398 ;  first  cabins,  398 ;  land  division,  398 ; 
census  in  1848,  398,  402 ;  scarcity  of  food, 
399,  404,  408 ;  mills,  bridges,  and  schools, 
402;  plans  for  manufactories,  402;  picture 
of,  in  1849,  404  ;  bargains  from  gold  seekers, 
406;  duties  levied,  431;  city  charter,  438; 
bishops'  courts,  439;  filth  and  abomina- 
tion, 442;  entrance  of  Gentile  merchants, 
557;  Mormon  household  arrangements, 
583;  Chamber  of  Commerce  organized, 
601. 

"  Salt  sermon,"  by  Rigdon,  196-198. 

Sandwich  Islands  Spaulding  Ms.,  56. 

San  Pete  affair,  457. 

School  of  the  Prophets,  564. 

Schouler,  James,  on  Joseph  Smith,  609. 

Scott,  Walter,  associate  of  Rigdon  and  the 
Campbells,  60;  on  millennium,  63,  64. 

Scott,  Gen.  Winfield,  in  Mormon  "war," 481. 

Scriptures,  Smith's  and  Rigdon's  translation 
of,  68-71. 

"  Sealing,"  doctrine  of,  287,  288. 

Seer,  Orson  Pratt's,  on  Roman  Catholic 
church,  99  note;  on  the  federal  govern- 
ment, 475;  Young's  authority  in  plural 
marriages,  586,  587. 

Sermon,  first  Mormon,  103 ;  Rigdon's  "  salt," 
196-198. 

Seventies,  Quorums  of,  120. 

Shaffer,  J.  W.,  governor  of  Utah  Territory, 
567;  suppression  of  the  Nauvoo  legion, 
567- 

Shakespeare  a  plagiarist,  96. 

Sharp,  T.  C,  editor,  indictment  of,  308 ;  in- 
citement to  hostilities,  346. 

Shaver,  L.,  associate  justice  of  Utah,  467. 

Sheen,  I.,  memorial  against  admission  of 
Deseret,  430. 

Sherman,  W.  H.,  in  "  New  Movement,"  56I. 

Sherman,  Gen.  W.  T.,  warning  to  Young, 
554- 

Signal,  Warsaw,  appeal  to  non-Mormons, 
338 ;  declares  war,  346. 

Sinclair,  C.  E.,  associate  justice  of  Utah,  478. 

Singleton,  Col.,  in  command  of  posse,  347. 

Slater,  Nelson,  book, "  Fruits  of  Mormonism," 

440. 
Slavery,  Mormon  views,  172  note. 
Smalling,    Cyrus,   on    Kirtland    Bank,    149; 

Smith  on,  156. 
Smith,   Alexander,  visit  to   Salt  Lake  City, 
563- 


Smith,  Alfred,  Gladdenite,  436. 
Smith,  Capt.,  of  Carthage  Grays,  303. 
Smith,  David  Hyrum,  visit  to  Utah,  563. 
Smith,  Don  Carlos,  against  polygamy,  277. 
Smith,  Emma,  married  to  Joseph,  Jr.,   24; 
connection  with  the  golden  plates,  28 ;  mar- 
ried to  Bidamon,  44;  scribe  to  Joseph,  45, 
102;    opposition    to    polygamy,   279,  280; 
on  the  prophet's  burial  place,  307 ;  plan  for 
church  government,  323;  reported  intended 
exposure,  323 ;  Young's  opinion  of,  563. 
Smith  family,  origin,  8;  character,  n,  13,  14. 
Smith,  F.  M.,  on  the  prophet's  burial  place, 

308. 
Smith,  George  A.,  mission  to  England,  229 ; 
on  the  migration  from  Nauvoo,  362  note; 
proposed  settlement  in  Iowa,  393 ;  part  in 
Mountain  Meadows  Massacre,  528, 532 ;  on 
Lincoln,  543 ;  petition  to  Congress,  591. 
Smith,   Hyrum,   part   in   publication  of  the 
Bible,  47;  testimony  regarding  the  plates, 
79;    conversion    of,   100;    early  desire  to 
preach,  100  note;  letter  to  Missouri,  155; 
on  Bennett,  238 ;  patriarch,  248 ;  revelation 
in   favor  of    Hoge,   248 ;    on    thieving   at 
Nauvoo,  259,  260 ;  appeal  for  Rigdon,  264 
note ;    denounces  polygamy,  276 ;    teaches 
it,  278,  291 ;    reads  revelation   to   Emma, 
279 ;   defence  of  Laws,  291 ;   candidate  for 
legislature,  293 ;  charges  against  W.  Law, 
293;    denial  of  polygamy  revelation,  293; 
at  Expositor  trial,  293,  294  ;  plan  for  flight, 
299  ;  story  of  his  murder,  301-306. 
Smith,  John,  patriarch,  398. 
Smith,   Joseph,  Jr.,    "History  of"    (autobi- 
ography), vii;    lack   of  education,  12,  19, 
48,  89 ;  two  pictures  of,  in  early  life,  12,  13 ; 
untruthfulness,  14 ;  a  money-digger,  16,  18- 
22 ;    first  trip  to  Pennsylvania,  16 ;    intro- 
duction     to      crystal-gazing,     16,     18-20; 
"peek-stone,"  discovery  of  and  use,  20-22; 
elopement  with   Emma  Hale,  24;   confes- 
sion to  Peter  Ingersol,  24 ;  his  account  of 
the  revelation  and  delivery  of  the  golden 
plates,  30-32 ;  lapse  from  virtue,  30 ;  journey 
with  plates  to  Pennsylvania,  36 ;  translation 
of  plates,  37 ;  alarm  over  theft  of  translated 
pages,  42 ;  "  revelations  "  about  Harris,  43, 
49;   substitute  translation,  45;  removal  to 
Whitmer's  house,  46 ;  publication  of  Bible, 
47-49 ;  Albert  Chandler's  recollections  of, 
48;    how  associated  with   Rigdon,  46,  47; 
Pres.  Fairchild  on,  68  ;  share  in  new  trans- 
lation   of   Scriptures,   68-71;    his   coming 
foretold,  70;  abuse  of  Harris,  84;  transla- 
tion of  Kinderhook  plates,  87 ;  authorized 
to  baptize,  etc.,  99;   ordained,  100;   early 
leadership,  101,  102 ;  charges  against,  dis- 
missed, 104 ;  support  ordered,  104 ;  on  the 
word    "Mormon,"   108;    revelations,   how 


INDEX 


633 


received,  in;  illustrations  of  failures,  113, 
114;  number  of,  by  years,  114;  reckless  use 
of,  114;  on  Father,  Son,  and  Holy  Ghost, 
116;  on  resurrection,  116;  "articles  of 
faith,"  118;  baptism  of  the  dead,  118;  in 
First  Presidency,  120;  goes  to  Ohio,  122; 
restrains  Kirtland  converts,  130;  supreme 
authority,  132;  to  have  a  house,  132;  re- 
bukes Rigdon,  132;  tarred  and  feathered, 
133-135 ;  defeats  Rigdon,  136 ;  on  seeing 
the  Lord,  138  ;  miracle  working,  139  ;  denial 
of  miraculous  power,  139  note;  translation 
of  "  Book  of  Abraham,"  140;  linguistic 
accomplishments  tested,  141 ;  westward 
move  ordered,  142 ;  Ohio  business  enter- 
prises, 143-15 1 ;  Young's  picture  of,  as  a 
storekeeper,  143;  plans  Kirtland  Temple, 
145  ;  share  of  Kirtland  property,  146 ;  Salem, 
Mass.,  trip,  147;  Kirtland  Bank,  148-152; 
lack  of  dignity,  153;  contempt  for  Rigdon, 
153;  plot  against  Newell,  154;  picture  of 
his  flock,  155 ;  moral  character  attacked, 
104,  156,  157  ;  denial  of  polygamy,  157,  272- 
274 ;  self-defence  at  Kirtland,  159 ;  flight 
from  Kirtland,  159;  first  visits  to  Missouri, 
166-168  ;  charge  of  cowardice,  168 ;  direc- 
tion to  Saints  in  Jackson  County,  176,  179; 
with  Army  of  Zion,  180,  181 ;  on  the  drown- 
ing of  non-Mormons,  182;  arrival  at  Far 
West,  187;  advice  looking  to  Danites,  190; 
proposed  salary,  193 ;  early  mistakes  in 
Missouri,  195 ;  with  volunteers  to  Daviess 
County,  198 ;  arrest  of,  at  Far  West,  199 ; 
studies  law,  200  note;  to  drive  out  non- 
Mormons,  201 ;  "  Fur  Company  "  ordered, 
202;  appeal  for  revenge,  203;  surrendered 
at  Far  West,  208;  a  prisoner,  211,  212; 
hearing  of,  212-215  ;  Marsh  on  his  ambition, 
213;  revelations  and  epistles  written  in 
prison,  215;  escape  to  Illinois,  216;  selects 
new  place  of  settlement,  223 ;  on  land  pur- 
chases, 224;  trouble  with  Hotchkiss,  225; 
deception  of  immigrants,  225 ;  revelation 
about  Nauvoo,  235,  236;  again  declared 
head  of  the  church,  236;  order  concerning 
Legion,  237;  on  Bennett,  238;  lieutenant 
general,  239;  opposition  to  Van  Buren,  242, 
243  ;  advice  to  Mormon  voters,  244  ;  alleged 
order  for  Gov.  Boggs's  assassination,  245 
note ;  arrest  on  this  charge,  246 ;  conceal- 
ment and  proposed  flight,  246 ;  rearrest  and 
discharge,  246;  another  indictment  and 
arrest,  247 ;  released  by  his  own  court,  247  ; 
betrayal  of  Walker,  248 ;  correspondence 
with  Clay  and  Calhoun,  250,  251 ;  views  on 
national  politics,  252;  named  for  President, 
253 ;  campaign  work  for  him  in  the  East, 
254;  monopoly  as  land  agent,  257,  258  ;  on 
thieving,  259 ;  troubles  in  Nauvoo,  262 ; 
complaints  against  Rigdon,  263  ;  appeal  to 


bankruptcy  act,  264 ;  dealing  with  Remick, 
264 ;  city  specie  payment  ordinance,  265 ; 
secular  pursuits,  265-267 ;  view  of  himself 
as  a  prophet,  266 ;  Satan's  aims,  266 ;  check 
on  his  revelations,  266;  prediction  of  the 
War  of  the  Rebellion,  267  ;  falling  out  with 
Bennett,  268-270;  scandal  about  Mrs. 
Pratt  and  Nancy  Rigdon,  270;  quarrel  with 
F.  M.  Higbee,  271 ;  marries  Eliza  R.  Snow, 
275 ;  polygamy  ordered  by  an  angel,  275 ; 
his  plural  wives,  275  note,  279  note ;  denial 
of  polygamy,  276 ;  references  to  the  practice, 
278;  writing  of  the  revelation,  279;  praise 
of  the  Laws,  290,  291 ;  indicted  for  adultery 
and  perjury,  290  note;  view  of  hell,  292; 
method  of  securing  spiritual  wives,  292; 
political  aims,  293  ;  explanation  of  the  reve- 
lation about  polygamy,  294 ;  action  against 
the  Expositor,  293,  296;  writ  secured  by 
Expositor  owners,  295 ;  surrender  to  Gov. 
Ford,  298,  300 ;  plan  for  flight,  299  ;  story  of 
his  murder,  301-306 ;  trial  of  the  murderers, 
301  note,  308 ;  funeral  and  burial  place,  307, 
308;  fate  of  some  of  his  murderers,  308; 
review  of  his  character,  309-312;  personal 
appearance,  310;  proposal  in  Utah  to  drop 
him  and  his  Bible,  309 ;  views  on  morality, 
310;  death  masks,  311 ;  his  sons,  322  note; 
Young's  fidelity  to,  328-329;  plan  for  a 
westward  move,  338 ;  divided  Mormon 
views  of,  433. 

Smith,  Joseph,  Sr.,  career  and  reputation,  in 
Vermont,  10;  occupation  in  New  York 
State,  11;  money-digger,  15;  dowser,  15; 
pedler  of  the  new  Bible,  49 ;  testimony 
regarding  the  plates,  79 ;  patriarch,  121 ; 
flight  from  Ohio,  121  note;  causes  a  fight 
at  Kirtland,  158. 

Smith,  Joseph,  III;  right  to  succeed  the 
prophet,  322 ;  head  of  Reorganized  Church, 
323- 

Smith,  Joseph  F.,  secures  Clayton's  affidavit, 
279. 

Smith,  Lot,  burning  of  the  government  wagon 
trains,  489,  490;  in  charge  of  government 
cavalry,  540. 

Smith,  Lucy,  "  History,"  vii ;  family,  8 ; 
characteristics,  9 ;  religious  views,  25 ; 
statements  about  the  golden  plates,  spec- 
tacles, and  breastplate,  32-34 ;  on  Harris's 
early  connection  with  the  Bible  enterprise, 
36;  on  Harris's  punishment,  43;  claim  to 
have  seen  the  plates,  86;  on  Rigdon,  137; 
on  Kirtland  church  fight,  158 ;  plea  for 
prophet's  son,  322  ;  addresses  a  conference, 
322  ;  her  death,  323. 

Smith,  "Mother."    See  Lucy. 

Smith,  "  Peg  Leg,"  information  to  the  pio- 
neers, 385. 

Smith,  Samuel  H.,  testimony  regarding  the 


634 


INDEX 


plates,  79;  conversion  of,  loo;  appeal  for 
peace  at  Nauvoo,  313. 

Smith,  William,  attacked  by  Parish,  158; 
elected  to  Illinois  legislature,  245;  patri- 
arch, 334 ;  cut  off  from  the  church,  335 ; 
his  "  proclamation,"  335 ;  last  days,  335 ; 
memorial  against  admission  of  Deseret, 
430. 

Smoot,  A.  O.,  informs  Young  of  approach  of 
troops,  482. 

Snow,  Eliza,  on  church  fight  at  Kirtland, 
258  ;  marriage  to  Smith,  275. 

Snow,  Erastus,  one*  of  the  Twelve,  330 ;  first 
sight  of  Great  Salt  Lake  Valley,  390,  391. 

Snow,  Lorenzo,  on  proselyting  in  England, 
230;  on  Smith's  presidential  candidacy, 
254 ;  taught  polygamy,  274 ;  his  plural  mar- 
riages, 275 ;  one  of  the  Twelve,  330 ;  on 
Mormon  destination,  358 ;  a  party  at 
Mt.  Pisgah,  370;  elected  president  of  the 
church,  601  note. 

Snow,  Bishop  Warren,  part  in  San  Pete 
affair,  457. 

Snow,  Z.,  associate  justice  of  Utah  Territory, 
458. 

Songs,  Mormon,  498. 

Spaulding  manuscript,  50-58 ;  history  of 
manuscript  found  in  the  Sandwich  Is- 
lands, 56-58 ;  how  incorporated  in  Mor- 
mon Bible,  66-68. 

Spaulding,  Solomon,  50-55. 

Speaking  with  tongues,  138. 

Spencer,  Orson,  professor  at  Nauvoo,  242; 
criticised  by  Young,  426. 

Spiritual  wives,  Bennett's  charges,  270;  at 
Nauvoo,  274 ;  doctrine  of  "  sealing,"  287 ; 
Smith's  method  of  securing,  292. 

Stakes,  origin  of  name,  120. 

Stansbury,  Capt.  H.,  on  Young's  dictatorship, 
438. 

Stanton,  Sec.  E.  M.,  appeal  to,  539;  places 
Utah  under  military  supervision,  544. 

State,  admission  of  Utah,  606-608. 

Stealing.     See  Thieving. 

Stenhouse,  T.  B.  H.,  sketch  of,  86 ;  on  Mor- 
mon Bible,  89;  on  proselyting  in  Europe, 
232  note  ;  Joseph  Smith's  widows,  279  note  ; 
polyandry,  288;  hand-cart  victims,  425; 
illustration  of  blood  atonement,  456;  on 
Cumming's  reception,  508,  509;  on  Moun- 
tain Meadows  Massacre,  518  note,  532,  534 
note;  on  Gov.  Dawson's  punishment,  538  ; 
on  Morrisite  tragedy,  541  note ;  apprehen- 
sion in  Salt  Lake  City,  558 ;  in  '*  New 
Movement,"  561 ;  vile  assault  on  him  and 
his  wife,  565  note ;  on  Young,  576,  577 ;  his 
second  marriage,  587. 

Steptoe,  Col.  E.  J.,  arrival  in  Utah,  467;  why 
he  declined  the  governorship,  468,  469; 
saves  Young  from  arrest,  549. 


Stewart  of  Nevada,  influence  of,  570. 

Stiles,  G.  P.,  associate  justice  of  Utah  Terri- 
tory, 467 ;  effort  to  sustain  federal  mar- 
shals, 470;  burning  of  his  papers,  471; 
return  to  the  East  and  report,  471. 

Stoal,  Josiah,  Smith's  employer,  16. 

Stoddard,  Calvin,  call  to  preach,  105. 

Stokes,  W.,  arrest  of  Lee,  533. 

Stout,  H.,  indictment  for  murder,  569. 

Strang,  J.  J.,  emissaries  to  Europe,  84,  325 ; 
biography,  324;  claim  to  Smith's  succes- 
sorship,  324 ;  his  church  in  Wisconsin,  324, 
326. 

Strong  of  Pennsylvania,  on  Babbitt's  admis- 
sion, 431. 

Struble,  introduces  anti-polygamy  bill  of 
1890,  602. 


Tabernacle  in  Salt  Lake  City,  408,  409. 
Tarring  and  feathering  of  Smith  and  Rigdon, 

"3-135- 

Taylor,  John,  mission  to  England,  229;  edi- 
tor at  Nauvoo,  253 ;  wears  endowment 
robe  at  Nauvoo,  278 ;  plan  for  flight  from 
Nauvoo,  299 ;  account  of  the  Smiths'  mur- 
der, 305;  wounded  in  Carthage  jail,  306; 
appeal  for  peace  at  Nauvoo,  313 ;  state- 
ment to  the  church,  314;  against  Rigdon, 
317 ;  estimate  of  the  migration,  365 ;  truth 
about  the  Battalion,  373;  misstatements  to 
English  converts,  411,  412;  biography,  412 
note ;  associate  justice,  State  of  Deseret, 
429;  letter  to  Capt.  Marcy,  496;  indicted 
for  treason,  500;  denunciation  of  the  terri- 
torial officers,  548 ;  rebuke  by  Judge  Drake, 
548;  discussion  with  Colfax,  556;  petition 
to  Congress,  591. 

Teachers,  duty  of,  101. 

Teachings,  Mormon,  115-120. 

Teas,  J.  B.,  land  at  Commerce,  111.,  223. 

Temples,  baptism  for  the  dead  in,  119;  at 
Kirtland,  145,  160;  at  Independence,  Mo., 
consecrated,  167 ;  corner-stone  laying  at 
Far  West,  196,  218  ;  at  Nauvoo,  revelation 
about,  235  ;  description  and  cost,  240 ;  ded- 
ication, 353 ;  destruction  of,  355,  356 ;  site 
in  Salt  Lake  City  selected,  397 ;  others  in 
Utah,  411. 

Territory.    See  Utah. 

Texas,  Wight's  church  in,  326. 

Thieving,  in  Missouri,  202 ;  charges  of,  at  Nau- 
voo, church  admissions,  258-261 ;  charge 
against  Strang's  followers,  325 ;  renewed 
Hancock  County  complaints,  331,  337; 
Young's  charges  of,  in  Utah,  441,  442. 

Thomas,  A.  L.,  governor  of  Utah  Territory, 
573  ;  on  church's  position  regarding  polyg- 
amy, 601. 

Thomas,  L.  L.,  order  to  Young,  539. 


INDEX 


635 


Times  and  Seasons,  vii. 

Tithing,  origin  of,  192,  193;  income  from, 
193;  rule  regarding,  194;  Young's  han- 
dling of  the  fund,  576,  577. 

Titus,  John,  chief  justice  ol  Utah  Territory, 
550;  Mormon  appeal  to,  559. 

Townsend,  Rev.  Jesse,  Smith  as  viewed  by 
his  neighbors,  106. 

Trail,  the  Mormon,  382. 

Translation  of  the  golden  plates,  37,  42-46; 
second  copy  made,  44 ;  at  Whitmer's  house, 
46 ;  alleged  error,  85 ;  of  the  Scriptures, 
68-71. 

Tribune,  Salt  Lake,  founders,  566. 

Trumbull,  Lyman,  visit  to  Utah,  556;  use  of 
his  influence,  570;  vote  against  Frelinghuy- 
sen  Bill,  571. 

Trustee  in  trust  for  the  church,  Young's  se- 
lection, 473. 

Tucker,  Pomeroy,  "  Origin  and  Progress  of 
Mormonism,"  viii ;  Smith's  occupations, 
11;  picture  of  Smith,  12;  Rigdon's  early 
visits  to  Smith,  43,  67 ;  publication  of  Mor- 
mon Bible,  47. 

Tullidge,  E.  W.,  "  History  of  Salt  Lake  City," 
viii;  laud  rights,  164  note,  398  note;  on 
hand-cart  tragedy,  426 ;  on  land  titles,  472; 
attitude  of  the  church  toward  the  federal 
government,  544  ;  in  the  "  New  Movement," 
561 ;  Young's  purpose,  568 ;  outside  influ- 
ences, 570;  view  of  the  church  character, 
617. 

Turner,  Prof.  J.  B-,  on  Mormon  teachings, 
127. 

Twelve  Apostles,  authorized,  120;  at  head  of 
the  church,  315 ;  reestablish  the  First  Presi- 
dency, 330. 

U 

"  Underground™  escapes  from  the  Edmunds 
law,  599. 

Underwood  of  Kentucky,  presents  anti-Mor- 
mon memorial,  430. 

United  States  Supreme  Court  decision,  on 
jury  law  and  prosecutor,  569;  advance 
hints  of,  570;  regarding  anti-polygamy 
laws,  593;  regarding  church  property,  602. 

University  of  Nauvoo,  24.2;  of  the  State  of 
Deseret,  440. 

Urim  and  Thumrnim,  delivery  to  Smith,  32; 
nature  of,  33 ;  Smith  deprived  of,  43 ;  how 
made,  94. 

Utah,  pioneers'  trip  to,  379,  391 ;  first  migra- 
tion and  crops,  391 ;  the  following  compa- 
nies, 392-394;  first  white  explorers,  395, 
396;  early  crop  failures,  398,  400;  early 
rural  settlements,  403 ;  first  Mormon  gov- 
ernment, 428;  first  state  convention  and 
constitution,  429;  admitted  as  a  territory, 
432;    Mormons  forbidden  to  leave,  446, 


447,  505  note ;  first  territorial  election,  458 ; 
Mormon  election  law,  467;  rival  courts 
and  officers,  470;  law  about  testimony  and 
citations,  470;  legislature  sustains  Young, 
499;  race  population,  582;  Utah  commis- 
sion, 597;  vetoed  law  of  1901,  605;  ad- 
mitted as  a  state,  606-608  ;  parties  in,  606; 
the  state  constitution,  607 ;  census,  610. 


Van  Buren,  Pres.  Martin,  Smith's  hostility  to, 
242. 

Van  Dusen,  I.  McGee,  description  of  endow- 
ment ceremony,  353. 

Van  Vliet,  Capt.  Stewart,  mission  to  Salt 
Lake  City,  485. 

Van  Zile,  district  attorney,  trial  of  R.  T.  Ben- 
ton, 541 ;  trial  of  Miles,  594. 

Vaughn,  V.  H.,  secretary  and  acting  governor 
of  Utah  Territory,  567,  568. 

"  Voice  of  Warning,"  127. 

Vcree  Herald,  325. 

W 

Wade,  Ben,  on  the  Mormons,  557;  anti- 
polygamy  bill,  591. 

Waite,  C  B.,  chief  justice  of  Utah,  540;  his 
offence  to  the  Mormons  and  what  followed, 
547.  548 ;  resigns,  550. 

Waite,  Mrs.  C.  B.,  on  Steptoe's  case,  468;  on 
Gov.  Dawson's  punishment,  538 ;  biogra- 
phy, 450  note ;  examples  of  polygamy,  586, 

587. 

Walker  Brothers*  experiences,  558,  560. 

Walker-Hoge  incident,  245-249. 

Wallingford  Community,  treatment  of,  135. 

"  War,  the  last  Mormon,"  in  Illinois,  347-351. 

"  War,"  the  Mormon,  in  Utah,  476-515;  the 
federal  force,  481 ;  instructions  to  the  fed- 
eral commander,  482;  Young's  proclama- 
tion, 486;  Young's  letter  to  the  federal 
commander,  487;  Mormon  plan  of  cam- 
paign, 489;  burning  of  wagon  trains,  489, 
490;  preparation  for  spring  campaign, 
wasteful  contracts,  500;  causes  of  the  back- 
down, 504;  exodus  of  Mormons,  509;  the 
terms  of  peace,  514;  Johnston's  march  to 
Salt  Lake  City,  515;  departure  of  troops 
from  the  territory,  537. 

Ward,  the  emigration  scandal,  410. 

Warren,  Major  W.  B.,  on  Hancock  County 
commission,  337;  in  command  in  Hancock 
County,  343;  advice  to  Mormons,  345; 
weekly  reports  from  Nanvoo,  345. 

Warsaw,  111.,  anti-Mormon  feeling,  297;  regi- 
ment's share  in  the  Smiths'  murder,  304; 
flight  of  inhabitants,  313;  Signal's  appeal 
to  non-Mormons,  338 ;  protest  against  the 


636 


INDEX 


"  burnings,"  343 ;   appeal  for  new  settlers, 
352;  Mormon  real  estate  sales,  361. 

Wasp,  Nauvoo,  253. 

Weed,  Thurlow,  on  Mormon  Bible,  47. 

Weller,  John  B.,  on  Robinson  murder,  555. 

Wells,  "  Gen."  D.  H.,  disloyal  utterances, 
461 ;  order  to  the  Legion,  484 ;  to  the  fed- 
eral commander,  488;  his  plan  of  cam- 
paign, 489;  indicted  for  treason,  500;  order 
from  Gov.  Cumming,  536 ;  assails  federal 
government,  543;  request  of  Gov.  Shaf- 
fer, 567;  indicted  for  unlawful  cohabi- 
tation and  murder,  568,  569;  refusal  to 
testify,  594. 

Wells,  Gov.  H.  M.,  veto  of  the  act  of  1901, 
605. 

Wentworth,  John,  Smith's  letter  to,  90,  118; 
presents  anti-Mormon  petition,  431. 

Wesley,  John,  belief  in  the  miraculous,  129. 

West,  C.  W.,  governor  of  Utah  Territory,  573. 

Westward  movement  of  church,  first  step,  102. 

White,  A.,  land  at  Commerce,  111.,  223. 

Whitmer,  Christian,  testimony  regarding  the 
plates,  79. 

Whitmer,  David,  description  of  the  transla- 
tion of  the  plates,  42 ;  miraculous  mani- 
festation to,  46;  on  Rigdon,  75,  101 ; 
expulsion  from  Far  West,  81;  later  years, 
83;  on  Smith's  ignorance,  89;  Smith's 
method  of  revealing,  in;  the  publication 
of  the  "  Book  of  Doctrine  and  Covenants," 
112,  113;  failure  of  a  revelation,  113; 
charges  against,  154;  expulsion,  188;  plan 
to  make  him  president  of  the  church,  328. 

Whitmer,  Jacob,  testimony  regarding  the 
plates,  79. 

Whitmer,  John,  testimony  regarding  the 
plates,  79;  failure  as  historian,  114;  de- 
posed, 188;  testimony  against  Mormon 
leaders,  213. 

Whitmer,  Peter  and  family,  46,  83,  85 ;  first 
elder,  100. 

Whitmer,  Peter,  Jr.,  ordered  West,  72;  testi- 
mony regarding  the  plates,  79;  arrival  in 
Missouri,  162,  163. 

Whiney,  N.  K.,  associate  justice,  State  of 
Deseret,  429. 

Whitney,  O.  F.,  "  History  of  Utah,"  viii;  on 
Gov.  Dawson's  punishment,  539. 

Whitsitt,  Prof.,  against  Pres.  Fairchild, 
68;  analysis  of  the  Mormon  Bible,  92 
note. 

Whittlers  at  Nauvoo,  261. 

Whitton,  Bridge,  connection  with  the  Kinder- 
hook  plates,  87. 
Wight,  Lyman,  arrest  at  Far  West,  199 ;  sur- 
rendered at  Far  West,  208 ;  commitment, 
214 ;  his  church  in  Texas,  326. 
Wilcox,  Phineas,  disappearance  in  Nauvoo, 
334- 


Wiley,  Robert,  on  the  Kinderhook  plates,  86, 

87. 
Williams,  F.  G.,  trial  of,  154. 
Willie,  captain  of  hand-cart  emigrants,  423. 
Wilson,  C.  C,  chief  justice  Utah  Territory, 

S67. 

Wilson,  Gen.  R.,  operations  in  Daviess 
County,  Mo.,  210-211. 

Winter,  Rev.  John,  recollections  of  Rigdon, 
66. 

Winter  Quarters,  363 ;  settlement  of,  377 ;  re- 
moval to  east  side  of  the  Missouri,  393. 

Wisconsin,  recommended  to  the  Mormons, 
186;  Strang's  church  in,  324-326. 

Witnesses  of  the  golden  plates,  78-86. 

"  Wolf  Hunters,"  Young's,  452. 

Woodruff,  Wilford,  first  visit  to  Smith,  153; 
mission  to  England,  229;  on  the  work 
there,  230;  report  of  the  conference  with 
the  Peace  Commission,  513 ;  elected  presi- 
dent of  the  church,  601 ;  manifesto  about 
polygamy,  602-604;  visits  from  the  spirits 
of  Smith  and  Young,  604. 

Woods,  G.  L.,  governor  of  Utah  Territory, 
568  ;  assertion  of  authority,  573. 

Woods,  J.  W„  counsel  for  Smith,  299. 

Woodward,  Judge  D.,  on  Father  Smith,  10. 

Wooton,  F.  H.,  secretary  of  Utah  Territory, 

537- 
Worrell,  Lieut.,  murder  of,  336. 


Young,  Ann  Eliza,  divorce  suit,  572,  573. 

Young,  Brigham,  suppression  of  Mother 
Smith's  "  History,"  vii ;  on  Smith  and  the 
Mormon  Bible,  98;  refusal  to  reveal,  114; 
doctrine  of  Adam,  116;  rebuke  of  O. 
Pratt,  117;  on  persecutions,  136;  Smith  as 
a  storekeeper,  143;  Kirtland  Bank,  149; 
admission  about  Danites,  192;  on  tithing, 
193,  194 ;  flight  to  Quincy,  111.,  216 ;  night 
visit  to  Far  West,  218;  president  of  the 
Twelve,  218;  Smith's  miraculous  healing, 
227;  mission  to  England,  229;  Smith's 
military  rank,  237  note ;  married  to  Smith's 
widows,  275  note;  original  copy  of  the 
revelation  about  polygamy,  280;  his  first 
feeling  about  polygamy,  280  note  ;  spiritual 
wife  doctrine,  287;  adopts  Lee,  289;  on 
Smith's  burial  place,  307;  faith  in  Smith, 
309;  course  after  Smith's  death,  triumph 
over  Rigdon,  314-318 ;  promise  about  the 
prophet's  son,  322;  on  Mother  Smith,  323; 
biography,  327  ;  joins  Mormon  church,  327  ; 
first  two  wives,  326,  327;  preaching  and 
working  at  his  trade,  328  ;  fidelity  to  Smith, 
328,  329 ;  revelation  about,  329 ;  on  revela- 
tions, 329, 435 ;  home  missionaries  sent  out, 
329 ;  president  of  the  church,  330 ;  dishon- 


INDEX 


637 


esty  of  elders,  331 ;  reply  to  Quincy  com- 
mittee, 339;  reply  to  Hancock  County 
commission,  340;  address  to  Pres.  Polk, 
357;  on  migration  to  the  far  West,  339; 
rebuke  to  counterfeiters,  360;  departure 
from  Nauvoo,  362;  address  to  the  camp, 
362;  arrival  on  the  Missouri,  367 ;  misrep- 
resentation to  the  English,  377 ;  carpenter 
work,  377  ;  his  only  revelation,  379;  lieuten- 
ant general  of  Utah  pioneers,  381;  visit  to 
Fort  Laramie,  383 ;  hears  about  Utah,  386  ; 
illness  on  the  way,  389;  return  trip,  392; 
leads  party  across  the  plains,  394;  first 
Sunday  service  in  the  valley,  396;  land  as- 
signments, 396;  on  further  explorations, 
397 ;  selects  site  of  Salt  Lake  City  Temple, 
397;  appeal  to  workmen,  403;  denuncia- 
tion of  gold  seekers,  407  ;  order  to  Saints 
in  Europe,  413 ;  responsibility  for  hand- 
cart tragedy,  418,  425-427  ;  plan  for  political 
independence,  428 ;  governor  of  State  of 
Deseret,  429 ;  J.  D.  Grant's  picture  of,  433 ; 
his  leadership  in  Utah,  433 ;  spokesman  of 
God,  434 ;  dictatorship  illustrated,  434-438  ; 
extracts  from  discourses,  435,  436,  437, 
441,  443,  468,  475,  484,  497;  denunciation 
of  Gladdenites,  436;  appropriation  of  a 
canon,  437  ;  on  property  rights,  437  ;  to  his 
creditors,  437 ;  on  bishops'  courts  and 
bishops,  439,  442 ;  trustee  of  the  church, 
440;  charges  ot  profanity,  stealing,  etc., 
441,443;  threats  of  punishment,  443,  444; 
surprising  confessions,  446;  warning  to 
would-be  fugitives,  446,  497  ;  responsibility 
for  Parrish  and  Aikin  murders,  448-451 ; 
his  "Wolf  Hunters,"  452;  on  human  sacri- 
fice, 455,  456 ;  first  governor  of  Utah  Terri- 
tory, 458 ;  Kane's  part  in  his  selection, 
459;  attack  on  Pres.  Z.  Taylor,  461,  463; 
denunciation  of  Judge  Brocchus,  462-466 ; 
delayed  election  proclamation,  464;  deter- 
mination to  be  governor,  468,  475 ;  treat- 
ment of  Steptoe,  469;  reply  to  Judge  Stiles, 
471;  Mormon  land  conveyed  to,  473;  an- 
nounces the  approach  of  the  federal 
troops,  483;  to  keep  out  the  troops,  484; 
threat  to  "take  to  the  mountains,"  485; 
proclamation  to  the  people  of  Utah,  486; 
letter  to  the  federal  commander,  487;  let- 
ters to  Col.  Alexander,  494,  495 ;  defiance 


of  federal  government,  497,  549 ;  indicted 
for  treason,  500;  interview  with  Kane,  502; 
offer  of  provisions  refused,  503 ;  reasons 
for  a  back-down,  504 ;  introduction  of  Gov. 
Gumming  in  the  Tabernacle,  508;  confer- 
ence with  the  Peace  Commission,  512,  513; 
ultimatum  about  the  troops,  514 ;  snub  to 
Gov.  Cumming,  516;  responsibility  for 
Mountain  Meadows  Massacre,  527-532; 
proposed  arrest  for  counterfeiting,  536,  537  ; 
authorized  from  Washington  to  raise  troops, 
539 ;  nominated  for  governor  of  the  State 
of  Deseret,  540;  scoff  at  Pres.  Lincoln, 
542;  predicts  ruin  of  the  government,  544; 
denunciation  of  federal  officers,  548 ;  how 
arrest  prevented,  549 ;  interview  with  Col- 
fax, 55Z;  interview  with  Lyman  Trumbull, 
556 ;  opposition  to  Gentile  merchants,  557, 
558,  560;  treatment  of  Walker  Brothers, 
558;  connection  with  Z.  C.  M.  I.,  559,  560; 
attacked  in  Utah  Magazine,  563;  trouble 
with  laborers,  563;  interview  with  the 
prophet's  sons,  563 ;  indicted  for  unlawful 
cohabitation  and  murder,  568,  569;  Ann 
Eliza's  divorce  suit,  572,  573 ;  death  of, 
574;  estimate  of  his  character,  574-581; 
his  wealth,  576-579;  fee  for  divorces,  577 ; 
account  with  the  church,  578,  579 ;  his  will, 
579;  list  of  his  wives,  579,  580;  his  houses, 
580;  warning  to  dissatisfied  wives,  584; 
family  life,  588;  view  of  the  church's  ex- 
tension, 617. 

Young,  Emmeline  A.,  suit  against  Brigham's 
executors,  579. 

Young,  Joseph  A.,  succor  to  hand-cart  emi- 
grants, 423. 


Zarahemla,  91,  94. 

Zion,  city  and  land  of,  163 ;  right  of  Saints 
to,  163-165,  169;  warning  against  a  rush 
to,  165;  location  and  founding  of  city,  166, 
167;  site  of  Temple  consecrated,  167;  not 
to  be  moved,  179 ;  abandonment  excused, 
224. 

Zion  Cooperative  Mercantile  Institution,  in- 
corporation and  object,  559  ;  business  sta- 
tistics, 560  note ;  influence  in  politics,  571 
note. 


THE   FOUNDATIONS   OF   AMERICAN 
FOREIGN   POLICY 

WITH   A   WORKING   BIBLIOGRAPHY 

By  ALBERT  BUSHNELL  HART 

Professor  of  History,  Harvard  University  ;  author  of '"  American 
History  told  by  Contemporaries,"  etc. 

Cloth.    i2mo.    $1.50,  net 

"A  very  good  introduction  to  the  whole  subject.  There  are  seven  chapters,  comprising  as 
many  diplomatic  phases :  The  United  States  as  a  World  Power,  The  Experience  of  the  United 
States  in  Foreign  Military  Expeditions,  Boundary  Controversies,  A  Century  of  Cuban  Diplo- 
macy, Colonies,  What  the  Founders  of  the  Union  thought  concerning  Territorial  Problems, 
and  The  Monroe  Doctrine.  To  these  is  added  a  working  bibliography  of  American  diplomacy, 
sure  to  be  helpful  to  those  who  wish  to  pursue  the  subject  systematically." 

—  St.  Louis  Post-Dispatch. 

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complete  resume  of  the  diplomacy  of  this  government  from  the  time  it  threw  off  the  yoke  and 
took  its  place  as  an  independent  nation.  Professor  Hart  is  a  very  clear,  concise,  and  interest- 
ing writer,  and  he  not  only  recapitulates  the  facts  of  history,  but  arranges  and  compares  them 
in  such  a  way  that  his  readers  can  easily  follow  the  trend  of  American  ideas." 

—  Nebraska  State  Journal. 

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commended  to  'anti-imperialists'  for  their  instruction.  Yet  it  is  not  controversial  in  tone  or 
partisan  in  its  arguments ;  it  contains  simply  the  results  of  profound  historical  knowledge.  A 
bibliography  adds  greatly  to  its  value."  —  Providence  Journal. 


AMERICAN   DIPLOMATIC   QUESTIONS 

By  JOHN  B.  HENDERSON,  Jr. 

Cloth.    Octavo.    $3.50,  net 

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be  found  as  serviceable  in  Europe,  though  there,  naturally  enough,  its  use  will  be  restricted  to 
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of  international  affairs,  whereas  with  us  it  is  a  book  for  all  the  people,  for  all  voters,  who  may 
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—  The  Mall  and  Express  (New  York). 


THE    MACMILLAN   COMPANY 

66  FIFTH  AVENUE,   NEW  YORK 


The  History  of  South  Carolina  under  the  Proprietary 
Government,  J670-X7J9 

The  History  of  South  Carolina  under  the  Royal 
Government,  J  7 19- J  776 

The  History  of  South  Carolina  in  the  Revolution,  1775-1780 

8vo.    Cloth.    Gilt  top.    Each  $3.50,  net 

By  Edward  McCrady,  a  Member  of  the  Bar  of  Charleston,  S.C.,  and  President  of  the 
Historical  Society  of  South  Carolina. 

"  Unquestionably  a  valuable  contribution  to  American  historical  literature.  It  covers  a  field  that  no 
one  else  has  hitherto  attempted  to  adequately  treat  of.  It  evidences  a  vast  amount  of  research  into  musty 
archives  and  an  instinct  that  guided  the  author  to  a  discriminating  selection  of  material.  .  .  .  The  future 
must  surely  be  indebted  to  Mr.  McCrady  in  no  mean  degree."  —  St.  Lout's  Globe-Democrat. 

ECONOMIC  HISTORY  OF  VIRGINIA  IN  THE 
SEVENTEENTH  CENTURY 

An  Inquiry  into  the  Material  Condition  of  the  People,  based  upon 
Original  and  Contemporaneous  Records 

By  Philip  Alexander  Bruce,  author  of  "The  Plantation  Negro  as  a  Freeman,"  and 
Corresponding  Secretary  of  the  Virginia  Historical  Society.  In  two  volumes. 
Crown  8vo.  Cloth,  gilt  tops.  Vol.  I,  pp.  xix  +  634.  Vol.  II,  pp.  vi  +  647. 
$6.00,  net. 

"  One  of  the  most  valuable  contributions  to  the  intimate  historical  knowledge  of  America.  This  work 
will  be  useful  for  all  time,  and  not  merely  to  the  lay  reader  who  wishes  to  know  accurately  concerning  the 
early  conditions  of  life  in  Virginia,  but  to  the  political  economist  and  the  social  scientist,  who  are  laboring 
to  advance  the  substantial  interests  of  the  world."  —  Philadelphia  Evening  Telegraph. 

RECONSTRUCTION  IN  MISSISSIPPI 

By  James  \V.  Garner,  Ph.M.,  Member  of  the  Mississippi  Historical  Society.  Cloth. 
8vo.     $3.00,  net 

"  The  latest  and  one  of  the  most  valuable  examples  of  pacific  literature  which  is  eradicating  the  bitter- 
ness from  our  national  history.  It  has  taken  over  400  pages  to  enable  Mr.  Garner  to  tell  the  story  of  that 
time  of  distrust  and  calamity,  and  even  with  so  generous  an  allowance  of  space  he  has  not  been  able  to 
permit  himself  much  comment,  but  has  packed  every  page  with  facts,  taking  the  pains  in  each  instance  to 
give  his  authorities  for  statements  made.  .  .  .  The  story  that  follows  is  one  of  arrogance  upon  both 
sides,  of  frailty  and  passion,  indignation,  courage,  conscience,  fanaticism,  nobility,  and  contemptibihty. 
Mr.  Garner  has  made  the  dry  records  of  the  legislature  and  newspapers  tell  their  dramatic  story,  and 
it  will  be  impossible  for  any  American  to  read  it  without  sympathy.  .  .  .  It  is  a  valuable  chapter  of 
American  history,  and  should  have  no  lack  of  readers."  — Chicago  Tribune. 

MARYLAND    AS   A   PROPRIETARY   PROVINCE 

By  Newton  D.  Mereness,  Sometime  University  Fellow  in  History  in  Columbia  Uni- 
versity.    Cloth.     8vo.     $3.00,  net. 

"  We  cannot  speak  too  highly  of  the  way  in  which  this  work  has  been  done.  Dr.  Mereness  has  studied 
every  point  in  the  light  of  the  original  contemporary  documents,  printed  and  in  manuscript,  not  only  those 
in  the  archives  of  the  State,  but  those  in  private  collections;  and  references  to  the  authorities  confirm 
every  statement.  The  labor  undergone  has  been  great ;  but  the  result  is  a  work  planned  and  carried  out 
in  the  truest  historical  spirit,  and  invaluable  to  the  student  of  American  history  and  institutional  develop- 
ment." —  The  Nation. 

THE    MACMILLAN    COMPANY 

66  FIFTH  AVENUE,  NEW  YORK 


Date  Due 


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Story  of  the 
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